Dementia resources for health professionals

As part of the Government’s response to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety (Royal Commission), Primary Health Networks (PHNs) are being funded to develop and enhance use of existing local dementia care support pathways for their region. 

The aim of this initiative is to support people living with dementia to live well in the community for as long as possible. It will support the health workforce to enhance the care and support provided to people living with mild cognitive impairment or dementia, as well as their carers and family.  

The initiatives key objectives are to:  

  • improve the timeliness of dementia diagnosis  

  • increase the uptake of post-diagnostic services and supports  

  • enhance the ongoing care and support provided to people living with dementia, their carers and families to support them to plan ahead and better navigate their dementia journey. 

 

Useful resources

  • Dementia Australia is the national peak body for people impacted by dementia. It supports and empowers the estimated half a million Australians living with dementia and the almost 1.6 million people involved in their care.

  • Dementia Australia Resources - Find dementia resources including information about medications and dementia, clinical practice guidelines and the ‘dementia and chronic conditions series’ toolkit.

  • Dementia Australia Help sheets - a series of help sheets that help provide advice, common sense approaches and practical strategies on the issues most commonly raised about dementia.

  • Bereavement Support – A practitioner guide to the Adult Attitude to Grief Scale (AAG) and other associated assessment tools.

  • Advance Care Planning is a voluntary process of planning for future health and personal care whereby a person makes their beliefs, values and preferences known so they can be used to guide future decision-making in the event that the person is unable to make or communicate decisions.

  • Palliative Care Referral contacts Information on how to refer a patient to palliative care in the Murrumbidgee.

  • Local resources - Coming soon!

  • The Dementia Guide: For people living with dementia, their families and carers. Download or order a hard copy here.

HealthPathways

Murrumbidgee HealthPathways is a web-based portal with condition-specific ‘pathways'. Each pathway supports clinicians with assessment, management and local referral information. The Murrumbidgee HealthPathways site is designed to be used at the point of care, primarily by general practitioners, but it is also available to other health professionals across the Murrumbidgee region.

For support to access Murrumbidgee HealthPathways, please contact the Murrumbidgee HealthPathways team on 02 69 233 100.