title: Back to the beginning: Perceptions of older Singaporean couples living alone.
abstract: Singapore has an aging population that is projected to increase by 32% in 2100. The majority of older couples live alone. "Aging in Place" is an initiative that is widely promoted by the government, in which older people are supported to live in their own homes. In this qualitative study, we explored the perceptions of older people living with their spouse in Singapore. Fifteen community-dwelling older participants were interviewed. Four themes emerged from the thematic analysis: (i) maintaining health and mobility; (2) maintaining relationships with spouse; (iii) maintaining relationship with others; and (iv) living the last leg of the race. The older people living on their own were generally content about maintaining their interdependence and complementary roles. Insights gathered from this study have relevance to implementation of the Aging-in-Place policy to ensure that older people receive the support they need to maintain their physical and psychosocial well-being while living on their own.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Guo Yu Samuel
authors.initials: GY
authors.lastname: Soon
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing Science, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.
authors.forename: Khoon Kiat
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Wenru
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Violeta
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lopez
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D057187:Independent Living; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception; D012846:Singapore
keywords: Aging in Place; Singapore; aging; elderly; interdependence; older adults