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Stephanie Wong

Financial vulnerabilities in younger onset dementia: insights for targeted interventions

Dr Stephanie Wong
  • Award

    Hazel Hawke Research Grant in Dementia Care

  • Status

    Completed

  • Start Date

    2 March 2019

About the project

People with dementia have a higher risk of being financially exploited, and may also have difficulty managing their money. Despite serious consequences, little is known about the prevalence and causes of financial vulnerabilities in these individuals, and how this impacts on their families. Currently, financial skills are not commonly assessed following a diagnosis of dementia. Therefore, it is unclear which types of skills are affected, and whether some skills are affected more in certain forms of dementia. One reason for the lack of financial skills assessment is the lack of appropriate tests available to clinicians.

Through this project, a new test of financial skills for individuals with dementia was developed. The test assesses a wide range of financial skills that are relevant for everyday life, including handling cash, paying bills, budgeting, scam detection, financial judgment and goal-setting and understanding financial management responsibilities (e.g. power of attorney). This new test will provide insights into the types of financial difficulties experienced by people with dementia, and help determine appropriate ways to intervene and manage these difficulties.

Dr Stephanie Wong | financial vulnerabilities in younger-onset dementia

Where are they now?

At the time of award, Dr Wong was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney.

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Last updated
2 January 2024