“Smaller Bites to Swallow Right” is an initiative by Alexandra Hospital's Speech Therapists to help individuals with dysphagia continue to enjoy good old hawker fare.
Dysphagia, the medical term for swallowing difficulty, affects mostly seniors, and can arise from neurological causes (such as Parkinson's disease and stroke), head and neck cancers and old age. An estimated 15% of the elderly population in Singapore suffer from dysphagia.
Our Speech Therapists shortlist and train willing hawkers to prepare their food with confidence (such as chop, cut, mince and blend), at no extra charge, so that their customers who are mostly seniors can get to enjoy local hawker fair safely.
Since September 2021, Speech Therapists Samuel Chi and Tey Jo Ching, have trained 24 hawkers from two hawker centres, namely, Alexandra Village Food Centre and ABC Brickworks Food Centre. Our Speech Therapy team is aiming to scale this movement to two more hawker centres (Mei Ling Market and Food Centre and Tanglin Halt Food Centre) in 2022, and potentially to other hawker centres, coffee shops, F&B outlets, and food courts islandwide, in the next few years.
The Queenstown district was chosen, not just because the hospital is within its precinct, but also because it is the oldest public housing estate in Singapore, with about 3 in 10 of the residents being 60 years old and above.
To find out more, call our Alexandra Hospital Speech Therapy team at 9788 6343.
| Stores trained | Store number | Trained in |
|---|---|---|
| Habib's power mee stall (Halal) | #1-08 | Chopped, Minced |
| Y.R.A. Rasool Fatimah (Halal) | #1-10 | Chopped |
| Dong Ji La Mian Xiao Long Bao | #1-19 | Chopped, Minced |
| Boneless Chicken Warong Adam (Halal) | #1-27 | Chopped, Minced |
| DEJI Fish Head Beehoon | #01-48 | Chopped |
| ABC Brickworks Mixed Veg Rice. Porridge | #01-111 | Chopped |
| Koh Za Hao Wei Taiwan Porridge | #01-126 | Chopped, Minced |
| Vegetarian Food | #01-114 | Chopped |
| Congee Delights | #01-45 | Chopped, Minced |
| Swee Kee Wanton Noodles | #01-39 | Chopped, Minced |
| Stores trained | Store number | Trained in |
|---|---|---|
| Wu Wei Xiang Chap Fan | #01-07 | Chopped |
| Leon Kee Claypot Pork Ribs soup | #01-18 | Chopped, minced and blended |
| Char Kuey Teow, Fried Oyster, Fried Carrot Cake | #01-30 | Chopped, Minced |
| Ming Xiang Zhi Char | #01-32 | Chopped, Minced |
| Dover Road Kai Kee Wanton Noodles | #01-09 | Chopped |
| Pig organ soup/herbal mutton soup | #01-54 | Chopped, Minced |
| Xing Guang Vegetarian (From Margaret Drive) | #01-64 | Chopped, Minced |
| Keng Eng Kee Seafood | 124 Bukit Merah Lane #01-136 | Chopped, Minced |
| Dover Road Kai Kee Wanton Noodles | #01-09 | Chopped |
| Stores trained | Store number | Trained in |
|---|---|---|
| Sin Kee Famous Chicken Rice | #02-22 | Chopped, minced, blended |
| Lak Kuan Economic Bee Hoon Kueh | #02-39 | Chopped |
| Shi Hui Yuan Horfan Speciality | #02-33 | Chopped |
| Braised beef, pork ribs, pork leg noodles | #02-15 | Chopped |
| Jia Cooked Food | #02-02 | Chopped |
| Chuang Xin Lor Mee | #02-09 | Chopped |
| Heng Long BBQ Chicken Rice | #02-42 | Chopped, minced |
| Hup Kee Teochew Fishball Mee | #02-38 | Chopped |
