24 September 2009

$1 million boost for development of dementia services

Minister for Health, Carmel Tebbutt, today announced $1 million in funding to support a new Dementia Policy Team which will develop ways to improve dementia services throughout NSW.

Ms Tebbutt said the NSW Government was committed to improving the quality of life of people living with dementia, their families and carers, particularly with the predicted increase in the numbers of people with dementia in the future.

“The Government has allocated $1 million over the next three years to assist the new Dementia Policy Team, which has been set up to identify the ideal service mix and mechanisms for improved coordination of dementia service planning and delivery across NSW,” Ms Tebbutt said.

“The majority of people with dementia are living independently with assistance and support by family, neighbours and the community.

“With the number of people in NSW affected by dementia expected to quadruple in the next 40 years, one of the new policy team’s priorities will be to plan services into the future and lead the development of strategies in the NSW Dementia Action Plan 2007-2009.

“The NSW Dementia Action Plan is the Government’s response to one of the most significant challenges arising from the state’s ageing population,” Ms Tebbutt said.

The Dementia Action Plan – which is in partnership with Area Health Services, the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care (DADHC) and key non-government organisations, including Alzheimer’s Australia – is consistent with the principles of the Commonwealth Government’s National Framework for Action on Dementia 2006-2010.

Under the Dementia Action Plan 2008-2009, there are five priority areas identified:

• Diagnosis and assessment, care and support services that are flexible and can respond to the changing needs of people with dementia and their carers and families;
• Access and equity to dementia information, support and care for all people with dementia, their carers and families regardless of their location or cultural background;
• Information and education that is evidence-based, accurate and provided in a timely and meaningful way;
• Research into prevention, risk reduction and delaying the onset of dementia, as well as into the needs of people with dementia, their carers and families; and,
• Workforce and training strategies that deliver skilled, high quality dementia care.

The Dementia Policy Team will be located within the South East Sydney Illawarra Area Health Service and lead by Professor Henry Brodaty, Director, Aged Care Psychiatry and Head of the Memory Disorders Clinic, Prince of Wales Hospital.

Professor Brodaty said the establishment of a policy team focusing on the expected increase in dementia was a great opportunity to improve the lives of people with dementia and their carers.

“The work of the policy team will draw on the growing evidence that exists, translate that evidence into practice and provide a framework for building quality dementia care in NSW,” Professor Brodaty said.

The $1 million allocated for the Dementia Policy Team is in addition to the more than $5 million in funding that the NSW Government provides for dementia services, including dementia clinical nurse consultants and community nurses, dementia training and risk reduction strategies, planning and research promotion.

For media inquiries contact: Patrick Keneally 0431 743 212

For a range of health information, go online to www.health.nsw.gov.au