Dementia Services

Page content: Overview | Development & planning projects | Further information

Overview

Dementia is a progressive disease that can affect a person’s memory, thinking, orientation and comprehension. An increasing number of Australians have dementia.

Dementia can cause great changes to a person’s life as well as to the lives of the people around them. The Victorian Government funds services to support people with dementia, their families and carers. Services that can be of assistance to people with dementia and their families include: help with daily domestic tasks, providing a break for carers, as well as social opportunities, information and counselling.

Statewide services to support people with dementia and their families and carers are funded by the Victorian Government. These services are:

• Support for carers of people with Dementia program
  This program provides flexible and innovative support, respite, counselling, education and leisure. This program meets individual and immediate needs which cannot be met by other services, and is provided by carer respite services and other carer support agencies.

Contact:
Your local DHS regional office
Your local council (find your local council)
Commonwealth Carer Respite Centres, 1800 059 059 (free call).

• Support and Links Program
  Counselling, support, information and referral services. This program is delivered by Alzheimer’s Australia Vic (AAV).

Contact:
AAV on (03) 9815 7800 or
the National Dementia Helpline, 1800 100 500 (free call).

• Home and Community Care (HACC) Program
  The HACC Program provides education and training of relevant workforces in dementia friendly care. HACC funds the AAV for dementia specific education, information, support and counselling services.

Other services for people with dementia and their families and carers

• Cognitive Dementia and Memory Services (CDAMS)
  This is a specialist diagnosis service for people concerned about memory loss or changes to thinking, located in metropolitan and rural Victoria. For more information visit the CDAMS section of the Sub-acute Care Services website.

• Aged persons mental health services
  For information on services for people with severe behavioural difficulties associated with organic disorders such as dementia, visit DHS’s Aged Person’s Mental Health Services website.

Development & planning projects

Other one-off initiatives and projects are funded to assist in service development and planning. These include:

• projects on education and training in dementia friendly care in hospitals, which have resulted in an education and training model being implemented in further hospitals. Sub-acute Care Services website
• a booklet on ideas for dementia friendly care in hospitals available for download at Dementia care in hospitals: Key findings and ideas from the evaluation of four projects, July 2005
• a Kit to Support Families and Carers of People with Dementia - contact Alzheimer’s Australia Vic (AAV) on (03) 9815 7800 to order a copy of the Dementia Information Resource Kit or order online at Alzheimer’s Australia
• research and the development of principles and guidelines on dementia friendly physical and social environments in respite and residential care
• projects on transition care, that is, making it easier for people with dementia to move for example from home to residential care, or to go to respite care, or into and out of hospital
• projects on how people’s different needs can best be met, for example homeless people, younger people with dementia, indigenous people and others from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Further information

• Dementia - Policy and guidelines
• Dementia - Publications

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