The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety released its third Background Paper as part of the Royal Commission’s work.
The paper, Dementia in Australia: nature, prevalence and care, aims to provide a high level introduction to dementia. It reviews the findings of broad-reaching Australian and international research, demographic reports and literature, and addresses a number of issues, including:
• what is dementia
• what are the physical and social consequences of dementia
• how prevalent is dementia in Australia
• what the research says about dementia care
• support for families and carers
• the dementia workforce.
The research presented highlights the potentially significant impact of timely diagnosis in primary care settings and positive outcomes of a person-centred or small domestic model of care on people living with dementia, as well as their family, friends and informal carers.
Statistics reveal the “much higher prevalence and incidence, and younger onset of dementia, as well as higher rates of risk factors for dementia” for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, presenting a significant challenge.
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