People living with dementia are citizens whose lives matter. They have the same rights, needs and desires as everyone else, but are ignored far too often. It’s time their voices were heard. So join us and let's talk dementia.
With Covid restrictions easing and the virus not disappearing any time soon, what does the future hold for our older and more vulnerable communities?Here to talk to us is Dr Ngaire Kerse (NZOM), the inaugural Joyce Cook Chair in Aging Well at the University of Auckland, and a GP at the City Mission. She has looked after many people with dementia in primary and residential care, and actively researches ways to prevent dementia and make the lives of those with dementia and their carers better.
Dementia consistently ranks as one of our most feared conditions. There is currently no cure for dementia, though researchers around the world are desperately searching for one. So why is it proving so hard? And how do we balance this with the urgent need for more care and support for people living with dementia today?Here to talk us through these issues is Professor Srikanth, Director of the National Centre for Healthy Ageing (NCHA), and Director of Research at Peninsula Health. He is also Professor of Medicine in the Central Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University, Melbourne Australia. He works clinically as a specialist Geriatrician with particular expertise in dementia and stroke.
It's been a tough couple of weeks as more and more of us become affected by Covid-19. The numbers of people testing positive for the virus are rising steadily every day. There can be no doubt that contracting Covid is a difficult experience for everyone. But what happens when you are also living with or supporting someone with dementia?In this episode, we hear from Sarah France, a Taranaki-based doctor specialising in the mental health of older adults. Sarah is a Board Member of Alzheimers NZ, and has extensive knowledge of the aged care system both in the UK and Australia.
Dementia mate wareware is one of the greatest health challenges facing Aotearoa New Zealand.Around 70,000 New Zealanders live with dementia right now, which is set to more than double by 2050. This increase is expected to be much faster for Māori, Pasifika and Asian communities.In September, Alzheimers NZ launched the Dementia Economic Impact Report 2020, produced by a team of researchers from the University of Auckland. This latest study has just confirmed what a monumental challenge dementia will be for Aotearoa New Zealand.Existing dementia support services are woefully inadequate now, and are nowhere near what's required to cope with this growing challenge.In this episode, we discuss the impact of dementia with two of the researchers behind the report, Etu Ma'u and Makarena Dudley, who are both Senior Lecturers at Auckland University.Etu Ma'u comes from Tonga. As well as lecturing, he is a specialist old age psychiatrist at Waikato Hospital. He also has a strong interest in dementia risk reduction and in equity, particularly for Pacific populations.Makarena Dudley (Te Rarawa, Te Aupōuri, Ngāti Kahu) has been researching mate wareware dementia in Māori since 2015, focusing on the development of a theory of dementia from a Māori worldview, a dementia screening tool specifically for Māori, and an app for awareness and prevention.
Champion for Dementia Dame Kerry Prendergast discusses how dementia has impacted her life, and what needs to be done to better prepare New Zealand for the sharp increase in people living with dementia. Both her parents lived with dementia, and her husband Rex has recently been diagnosed with vascular dementia.
Communication can be a big challenge for people living with dementia. As the journey of dementia progresses, people can find it more and more difficult to express themselves clearly, and to understand what others say. But as we all know, there's much more to communication than just words. As a Champion for Dementia and writer, Kate De Goldi knows first hand the importance of communication, and the ability to be able to express our thoughts and feelings to the people we care about.In this episode, we talk dementia and communication with Alison Wray, Research Professor of Language and Communication at Cardiff University. Alison's research into dementia communication focuses on understanding the causes of disrupted communication - not just as a result of the underlying damage to the brain, but also what happens to the norms of social interaction and how this is affected by the cognitive disruptions caused by dementia.Check out Alison's new book, Why Dementia Makes Communication Difficult.
People living with dementia face enormous challenges, not least of which is their right to make the decisions that are important to them. In this episode, we talk to Disability Rights Commissioner Paula Tesoriero about ways we can better support the rights of people living with dementia. As New Zealand's Disability Rights Commissioner, Paula's role to protect and promote the rights of disabled New Zealanders. Paula is Chef de Mission for the NZ Paralympic team heading to Toyko. She is also a Paralympian cycling gold medalist, a former lawyer, was a general manager at Stats NZ and at the Ministry of Justice. She is a life trustee with the Halberg Foundation, and has held a range of governance roles on various Boards, and she is a mum.
In 2019, Te Manawa Museum of Art, Science and Heritage became Aotearoa New Zealand's very first dementia friendly museum. Te Manawa achieved this accreditation through Alzheimers NZ's Dementia Friendly Recognition Programme. They are amongst a growing list of Kiwi businesses and organisations who are taking this positive step. Janet Ellery leads Te Manawa's People and Partnerships and talks to us about their Dementia Friendly journey, and the impact its having in the community. We also discuss New Zealand's readiness for the future, where the number of us living with dementia is expected to triple in just a few decades' time, and one where most of us living with dementia will continue to do so at home, in our communities.
A recent international report has found that dementia design is 30 years behind the physical disabilities movement.The World Alzheimer Report 2020, released by Alzheimers Disease International, calls on governments around the world to take action, and include design solutions in their responses to dementia. Dementia is a disability, one that is going to become more of an issue for our communities and our government as our society ages. So how can we start putting dementia design principles into action? Jack O'Neill is a Lecturer of Architecture at Unitec, researching how an architecture of care that prioritises people with dementia can support them not to “just” live but to live as fulfilling a life as possible.
Presenter: Lyneta RussellGuests: Alison Douglass, Greg Young and John McMillanThe book, Assessment of Mental Capacity: A guide for Doctors and lawyers, can be found here: https://vup.victoria.ac.nz/assessment-of-mental-capacity-a-new-zealand-guide-for-doctors-and-lawyers/
Dr Makarena Dudley is a senior lecturer at Auckland University, and recipient of this year's Alzheimers NZ Research Fellowship. One of only four Māori neuropsychologists in the country, Dr Dudley is investigating the interface of dementia and Māori. Her studies include developing a screening tool for detecting dementia in Māori and a theory of dementia from a Māori worldview. The work is based on interviews and relationships with kuia and kaumatua.
Kate De Goldi's blog series:Part 1Part 2
Dementia affects almost four out of five of us in some way. By 2050 it will cost the country nearly $5 billion a year.Astonishingly, and despite these sad facts, there is no concrete government action plan on the horizon to deal with this urgent and growing health care challenge, a challenge that has been further exposed by Covid-19.Covid-19 has not caused this problem. It has merely brought into sharp focus just how neglected and vulnerable people with dementia and their families really are.Across the country, local Alzheimers organisations provide help to their communities in the form of services like support and activity groups, day programmes and Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST). These services are a lifeline for many. But the outbreak of Covid-19 means that until its safe, these can no longer take place in a face to face capacity. In fact, many older people have already been staying home for longer than the formal lockdown period, and will likely need to do so for some time yet. If the Covid-19 crisis has any upside, it's the fact that, for the first time in decades, the plight of older people is receiving long-overdue attention and concern. And it is encouraging to hear that the community is stepping up and finding innovative ways to help. But we've still got a long way to go on our journey. As lockdown restrictions ease and life starts to get back to normal for lots of us, wouldn't it be great if doing more and better for older and more vulnerable people in our communities could be more than a blip on the nation's radar?
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