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by Ilika Karunaratne

When my friend Premala Jayaratne told me that I would enjoy meeting Dr. Ann Tsao here as Chairperson, HelpAge International for their conference, I expected a rather formidable lady, well into middle age. It was a surprise to find someone so young and pretty.

Dr. Mary Ann Tsao, grew up in Hongkong and was educated in the US, where she did medicine, specializing in Paediatrics and worked in Health Planning too. "I have now gone from working for those beginning life to the other end - from paediatrics to geriatrics ! I lived in the US till my grandmother, who was then 86, wanted me to return to Singapore where our family was based, to help her start the Tsao Foundation.

My grandmother's every wish was a command. She was a strong willed old lady, born in China, who had seen a lot of changes in her lifetime. As far back as I can recall, there was an underlying aura of power and strength about her.

Her childhood wish had been to be a nurse, but the strictures of that particular time, meant that this was forbidden territory to girls of good families. It had always been her belief that women could serve humanity to relieve suffering and had a role far beyond being merely wife and mother. So, as her dreams of being a nurse were thwarted she married at 17 and devoted her life to being an exemplary wife and mother.

She was very much the matriarch and all major decisions were made by her. After my grandfather's death she was depressed and retreated into seclusion for sometime, reflecting on her life; she emerged from this cocoon endowed with fresh, fighting spirit to become a citizen in her own right and began her brainchild - The Tsao Foundation".

It appears that Mary Ann's grandmother had lived carefully and thus saved a lot of money. Together with this, she had amassed a fortune by investing in the stock market and it was a family joke that she could never be disturbed when the stock market was in action.

I queried the reason for starting the foundation". My grandmother felt that the foundation would hold the family together after her death. She felt that women in general lead lives of sacrifice and wanted to help to make the issues of ageing more comfortable for them. So the Tsao foundation is only for the aged; there are more women beneficiaries as women generally live longer which leads to more widows". Ms Tsao is head of the Tsao foundation as well as Chairperson of HelpAge International which helps old people all over the world.

"Asia has more than half the oldest people in the world. Women are 50% of this and I expect this to grow phenomenally over the next few years".What exact services does the Tsao foundation offer to the elderly in Singapore? "We help with social and training programmes for the community. We support the family with Homecare.

The first Homecare project in Asia was started in Singapore. Most people live in High-Rise apartments and elevators often don't go beyond the 4th floor. This means that the elderly living there after a stroke or amputation are virtual prisoners in their apartments; it is often too much for a family to cope on their own. We had a case recently, of a daughter, the sole breadwinner who lost her job 4 times in a year, as she had to take so much time off to care for an elderly parent. She had to carry her up and down, cook, feed her, wash her, take her to the doctor, so in cases like this, we help to take the stress away, by providing a nurse or home help and medical care".

The Tsao foundation is practical and looks at the reality of the situation. Recipients can pay what they like in relation to income - even a dollar or so. "Medical treatment is often a combination of western and traditional medicine.

The doctors concerned combine their knowledge effectively to help the elderly. Our training programmes ensure that people are well trained to deal with the elderly.

This concept of care management was started in the west 20 years ago. There is a great need for care, but we make sure that the family is the major provider of care. Old people live longer today, so circumstances have changed.

It is not that families love elderly parents any less, but they are often helpless and unable to cope. This is where we come in and help to manage the package of care.

We assess the situation and our professional carers are trained to know what is needed. They are in the right service at the right time at the right place. With our help the elderly are able to stay in their own homes, where they are infinitely happier. Training of family, helpers, professionals and volunteers are done by us. We also have programmes to help younger people to age well with information and resources". Does Ms Tsao have to travel a lot for HelpAge and does she think HelpAge, Sri Lanka is fulfilling their mission? "My work does involve a lot of travel.

We had a workshop in Korea on a version of Home care in which 13 countries including Sri Lanka participated. It was funded by HelpAge, International. I Think HelpAge Sri Lanka is a very good outfit and a remarkable organization. They have a good rapport with the government too, which quite naturally, is an advantage. In Singapore, The Tsao foundation, works closely with HelpAge, so my dual role as Head of both, is an easy one. The Tsao foundation helps with technical support, workshops and training. Geriatric nurses have to be specially trained and to have experience to deal with the different needs of the elderly".

What about her family?. My husband is American and a Buddhist like me. He is a physicist and was a research scientist, but now has his own IT company in Singapore. He is supportive of my work and realizes that my travel is necessary as it is important to show the rest of the world what ageing in developing countries is all about. He and my 4 year old daughter are with me here in your beautiful country. We plan to do some sight seeing before we leave".

One sees that Mary Ann Tsao is deeply committed and dedicated to her work. One can almost sense her thoughts as she flits from one aspect of her work to another. Her thoughts seem almost like fireflies on a dark night.

A light here a flash there, an unexpected twinkle on the periphery of vision. Her grandmother's vision is her inevitable course, her life inextricably woven into the fabric of her grandmother's dream.

Her vast family fortune, has not given her any pretension of grandeur.

She is instead blessed with deep humility and compassion and a desire to help those unable to help themselves.

Her carapace of courtesy and good humour shows she takes it all in her stride. A life committed to relieving pain and suffering in one's fellow mortals must surely be worthy of reward. If not in this world, then in the next.

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Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
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