Non-profit Organization KOTOBUKI Co., Ltd. Holds Workshop in Collaboration with SUSS
Non-profit organization KOTOBUKI Co., Ltd. collaborated with Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) to hold a workshop in Singapore, aiming to share practical knowledge on elderly care in an aging society. This event commemorated the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Singapore, fostering dialogue and practical learning in elderly care.
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Dialogue Workshop for Active Ageing—Better Care Starts with Better Conversations in Your Workplace"
■ Workshop Overview
This workshop was held in collaboration with Dr. Kelvin from the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) and with the cooperation of NunchiMari, at Vanguard Healthcare's facility "Harmony Village @ Bukit Batok."
The group photo from the afternoon session.
The workshop title was "Dialogue Workshop for Active Ageing—Better Care Starts with Better Conversations in Your Workplace."
Commemorating the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Singapore, the workshop was conducted with the aim of sharing practical knowledge on the common challenge of an aging society, building upon the long-standing cooperative relationship between the two countries.
*Harmony Village @ Bukit Batok is a facility developed as a model for Singapore's first "Community Care Apartments (CCA)." This facility integrates housing and care functions, featuring "public housing with care services," and includes living amenities such as a hawker center and community garden, designed as an environment that integrates living and care. Currently, based on this model, expansion is underway in multiple regions across Singapore.
■ Workshop Content
KOTOBUKI views "aging not as a problem but as an opportunity to rethink the nature of society." Rather than presenting Japanese care as a "correct answer" or "success model," we believe there is value in the trial and error and practical efforts born from being a country that has faced these challenges ahead of the world.
The first half consisted of a lecture, sharing the historical background of Japanese long-term care, the challenges currently faced, and how Japan is confronting and attempting to overcome them.
The second half involved a workshop using "KOTOBUKI CARE PATTERN (Words for Living Together)" to verbalize values and actions cherished in care settings and share them through dialogue.
Workshop using KOTOBUKI CARE CARDS.
*"KOTOBUKI CARE PATTERN (Words for Living Together)" is a research project that Kaneko and Munakata of Non-profit Organization KOTOBUKI Co., Ltd. have been working on since 2018 at Professor Takashi Inaba's laboratory at Keio University SFC. To date, they have investigated over 1,300 domestic case studies and extracted and verbalized the tacit knowledge valued in creating elderly care environments. In 2022, the results were published as the book "Words for Living Together" (Maruzen Publishing) and as cards.
■ Participant Feedback
22 participants attended this workshop, with 100% responding that it was "useful for work" and 100% stating they would be "likely to recommend to colleagues or others."
Participants frequently cited the importance of communication and relationships, the perspective of person-centered care, and the understanding that "there is no single correct answer in elderly care." They also shared practical learnings, such as deepening insights and understanding through dialogue, and organizing thoughts with KOTOBUKI CARE cards. Furthermore, feedback indicated a deeper understanding of supporting the elderly within the community and care approaches that emphasize human connections.
Other free-form comments included:
Thank you for a very informative session. Very helpful!
Love kotobuki approach. Thank you.
Very insightful and inspirational sharing
The cards really help reinforce and put to words concepts and earlier understanding.
Much a
■ Workshop Overview
This workshop was held in collaboration with Dr. Kelvin from the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) and with the cooperation of NunchiMari, at Vanguard Healthcare's facility "Harmony Village @ Bukit Batok."
The group photo from the afternoon session.
The workshop title was "Dialogue Workshop for Active Ageing—Better Care Starts with Better Conversations in Your Workplace."
Commemorating the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Singapore, the workshop was conducted with the aim of sharing practical knowledge on the common challenge of an aging society, building upon the long-standing cooperative relationship between the two countries.
*Harmony Village @ Bukit Batok is a facility developed as a model for Singapore's first "Community Care Apartments (CCA)." This facility integrates housing and care functions, featuring "public housing with care services," and includes living amenities such as a hawker center and community garden, designed as an environment that integrates living and care. Currently, based on this model, expansion is underway in multiple regions across Singapore.
■ Workshop Content
KOTOBUKI views "aging not as a problem but as an opportunity to rethink the nature of society." Rather than presenting Japanese care as a "correct answer" or "success model," we believe there is value in the trial and error and practical efforts born from being a country that has faced these challenges ahead of the world.
The first half consisted of a lecture, sharing the historical background of Japanese long-term care, the challenges currently faced, and how Japan is confronting and attempting to overcome them.
The second half involved a workshop using "KOTOBUKI CARE PATTERN (Words for Living Together)" to verbalize values and actions cherished in care settings and share them through dialogue.
Workshop using KOTOBUKI CARE CARDS.
*"KOTOBUKI CARE PATTERN (Words for Living Together)" is a research project that Kaneko and Munakata of Non-profit Organization KOTOBUKI Co., Ltd. have been working on since 2018 at Professor Takashi Inaba's laboratory at Keio University SFC. To date, they have investigated over 1,300 domestic case studies and extracted and verbalized the tacit knowledge valued in creating elderly care environments. In 2022, the results were published as the book "Words for Living Together" (Maruzen Publishing) and as cards.
■ Participant Feedback
22 participants attended this workshop, with 100% responding that it was "useful for work" and 100% stating they would be "likely to recommend to colleagues or others."
Participants frequently cited the importance of communication and relationships, the perspective of person-centered care, and the understanding that "there is no single correct answer in elderly care." They also shared practical learnings, such as deepening insights and understanding through dialogue, and organizing thoughts with KOTOBUKI CARE cards. Furthermore, feedback indicated a deeper understanding of supporting the elderly within the community and care approaches that emphasize human connections.
Other free-form comments included:
Thank you for a very informative session. Very helpful!
Love kotobuki approach. Thank you.
Very insightful and inspirational sharing
The cards really help reinforce and put to words concepts and earlier understanding.
Much a