Dementia Action Plan launched in Bendigo

Victorian Minister for Ageing David Davis recently launched the Victorian Dementia Action Plan (VDAP) 2014-18 at the opening of Alzheimer’s Australia Vic’s (AAV) first permanent regional office in Bendigo.

There are about 74,600 people with dementia living in Victoria, though the rates of people with dementia do not appear to be increasing.

“The Victorian Dementia Action Plan (VDAP) promotes the health and wellbeing of Victorians, aims to minimise the risk of getting dementia, and supports the ongoing independence, health and wellbeing of those who do have dementia,” Minister Davis says.

“The Victorian Coalition Government’s plan enables Victorians concerned about memory loss to get timely assessment and diagnosis, so they can plan for life ahead and prepare for the future,” he adds.

The action plan seeks to meet the diverse needs of our population by delivering support and services to people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

It also seeks to support the partners, families, friends, neighbours, work colleagues and others who support people with dementia each day.

“The VDAP has references to Seniors Count! Victoria’s Seniors Participation Action Plan, 2014-2019 which heralds a shift in how we think about ageing and sets a new course for ageing well in Victoria,” Minister Davis says.

“We know that programs and services, and whole communities, need to be able to support people with dementia and their carers so we’re expanding the support available in the Loddon Mallee region with a new AAV office in Bendigo,” he says.

The new Bendigo AAV office is part of a major expansion of a vital support service for people with dementia across regional and rural Victoria.

The Bendigo AAV office will become a major hub for the Loddon Mallee region, in addition to the AAV office at Mildura.

 The new office will provide information, support, counselling and education services to people in the region living with dementia and their families and carers.

Loddon Mallee will have a dementia information and resource centre, a regional hub of dementia excellence.

The office will establish referral pathways to local council services, home and community care services, planned activity groups, package care, diagnostic services, residential care, and other services.”

Alzheimer’s Australia Vic received $400,000 through the Home and Community Care program, a joint Victorian Commonwealth funded initiative, to open new offices in Gippsland and Bendigo to provide additional support in the Lodden Malle area.

The Bendigo office is the final of the four regional AAV offices to open with this additional commitment from the Victorian Coalition government.

Minister Davis says the Bendigo office will be a place that people with dementia and their families can drop in to get help, advice and support.

“People and organisations can get advice about memory concerns, information, counselling support, educational programs, and help to navigate the service system,” he says.

“The hub will educate and enable the community service system to recognise signs of dementia, understand avenues for diagnosis, and help people access services and support.”