Media releases

People in the earlier stages of dementia are being urged by experts to make a plan for their future medical treatment so they can continue to have a choice in the care that they receive. 

Leading local and international experts on dementia care will convene in Sydney on 24 March for the Dementia Australia National Symposium 2020 - Dementia care is quality care. The National Symposium will be the culmination of the Dementia Australia Quality Care Initiative, a project that has focused on raising the quality of dementia care.

Federal parliamentarians, government officials and dementia advocates will tomorrow convene with the Parliamentary Friends of Dementia to be presented with some practical solutions for transforming dementia care in Australia. Dementia Australia CEO Maree McCabe said while the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety will release its much-anticipated recommendations in November this year, urgent action is needed now.

Dementia Australia is proud to launch The Dementia Guide, a comprehensive resource to support people living with dementia, their families and carers. Updated figures show that in 2020 the number of Australians estimated to be living with dementia has increased to 459,000. Without a medical breakthrough the number of Australians with dementia is expected to be more than one million by 2058.

Dementia Australia acknowledges Leader of the Opposition, Hon Anthony Albanese MP, for prioritising the urgent need to improve dementia care in his speech yesterday. Mr Albanese’s address in Brisbane outlined the Labor Party’s vision for older Australians, highlighting the importance of dementia-friendly spaces in our communities and the impact dementia is having on almost half a million Australians.

Clarifying the relationship between alcohol use and dementia is just one of 19 new projects that will share in $1.5 million in grants to conduct ground-breaking dementia research. Dr Louise Mewton from UNSW Sydney’s Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) was awarded a $75,000 Dementia Australia Research Foundation Pilot Grant, sponsored by the Dementia Centre for Research Collaboration, and will use the funding to clarify the relationship between low to moderate alcohol use and the risk of dementia.

Best known for saving lives on Network Ten’s Bondi Rescue, lifeguard Andrew ‘Reidy’ Reid will be making a splash in Sydney Harbour on Australia Day in honour of his mother who is living with Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. Mr Reid will host the Sydney Harbour Splash event on Sunday that will inspire thousands of swimmers, taking on a variety of distance challenges, to raise money and make a difference to the lives of people impacted by dementia.

Dementia Australia thanks outgoing Secretary of the Department of Health Glenys Beauchamp for her service to the sector over her 21 year career in the Australian Public Service. Dementia Australia CEO Maree McCabe said Ms Beauchamp had been a committed leader of the Department of Health.

Dementia Australia is pleased to announce its annual awareness week - Dementia Action Week - will be held from 21-27 September 2020 and is encouraging people to ‘save the date’ and register online for more information.

Dementia Australia will be hosting internationally-renowned dementia expert, Prof Dawn Brooker, for an Australian masterclass tour on person-centred care this March. Prof Brooker, Director of the University of Worcester Association for Dementia Studies UK, will embark on the tour following her keynote presentation at the ‘Dementia Australia National Symposium 2020 – Dementia care is quality care’ to be held in Sydney on 24 March 2020.

A new digital learning platform to inspire care workers to learn more about dementia will be developed by Dementia Australia over the next three years, with the support of Gandel Philanthropy. Dementia Australia CEO Maree McCabe said it was an absolute honour to have been awarded a Gandel Philanthropy multi-year Major Grant.

Wednesday 18 December 2019 The summer holidays are traditionally a time for families and friends to gather together but for people living with dementia, their families and carers, the time can be fun but challenging. To help make the most of the holidays, Dementia Australia has some tips to support people impacted by the disease.