National University of Singapore (NUS) Professor Qiushi Feng Delivers Special Lecture on “Rethinking Disability in an Ageing Population

July 24, 2025 – Professor Qiushi Feng, PhD, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences National University of Singapore gave a lecture entitled “Rethinking Disability in Population Ageing” as part of an on-line advanced Global Health Course. Coordinator of the course is Associate Professor Myo Nyein Aung, Principal Investigator of the Digitally Inclusive Healthy Ageing Communities (DIHAC) study. Students majoring in global health from several different countries attended the lecture.

Professor Feng is a social gerontologist, and the author of so many articles in his research field. He introduced theoretical models of disability, including the medical model and the disablement model. He discussed disability as an outcome of social mechanism, environmental mechanism, and psychological mechanism.

Professor Feng explained that graduate students in global health should understand the caveats in how we measure disability and the global burden of disability and interpreting the findings based on cultural context. He delved into the ongoing debate surrounding the measurement of Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL), arguing that these metrics are viewed differently from social and medical standpoints. Applying the theory of epidemiological transition, he reflected Japan’s current demographic status as a “post super-ageing era”.

Figure: Professor Qiushi Feng delivering lecture on Advanced Global Health course that was attended by Associate Professor Myo Nyein Aung and Juntendo university international graduate students on July 24, 2025

“Toileting and bathing are profound social issues, not just medical problems and ADL,” Professor Feng noted. Technology, supportive social environment, strong communities can significantly help people with different level of frailty. However, there is a public health dilemma due to growing global prevalence of sedentary lifestyles and solitary living.

He presented research across several decades, including his latest publications. He also highlighted the importance of interdisciplinary and cross-cultural research, which provided invaluable insights for graduate students in global health research. He applied examples from Africa, India, China, Japan to interpret disability research finding vastly across the globe. 

The Graduate School of Medicine at Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan, and the DIHAC study team expressed great admiration and sincere thanks to Professor Feng for his valuable contribution.