An Australian Government initiative

Alzheimer's Australia N a t i o n a l C r o s s C u l t u r a l D e m e n t i a N e t w o r k N e w s l e t t e r

The Productivity Commission released their final report, Caring for Older Australians, on 8th August 2011. The Productivity Commission has failed to acknowledge dementia as the core business of aged care. There is not a single

recommendation in the report that addresses dementia. The majority of residents in aged care have dementia, it is the most disabling of all conditions among older people and is one of the main causes of institutionalisation. Any reform of aged care should be underpinned by a comprehensive strategy to address dementia.

There are a number of potential positives for older people more generally in the recommendations. The report provides a framework for aged care reform which aims to increase choice, provide more options for community care and create a sustainable aged care system in line with the advocacy of Alzheimer’s Australia. The key elements of the recommendations from a perspective of older people are:

▪ Greatly expanded access to services based on an assessed entitlement

▪ Greater emphasis on community care

▪ Better access to information for consumers

▪ Models of consumer directed care that empowers older people and their family carers to decide when, where, and how the services they need will be delivered

The critical element of the report is for the new system to be underpinned by an entitlement approach, which, if implemented, would ensure that a person assessed as having a need would have access to care. Currently older people and their family carers are confronted by a system that is heavily rationed and involves significant delays in accessing a community care package or residential care.

Alzheimer's Australia welcomes the emphasis on careful transition in the report, as consumers could be open to exploitation rather than choice if the market was freed up before there was an adequate supply of care.

The focus on flexibility, choice, and community care in the Commission’s report may be particularly important for individuals who have difficulty accessing appropriate services, such as those from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds, and from regional and remote areas. For example, the Commission has recommended a trial of a cash option for respite. Having the option of purchasing care from neighbours, friends or family may mean access to care which is provided by a person who understands your culture, language and community.

continued on page 2...

Inside this Issue

New Members on the National Cross Cultural Dementia Network

3

Talking Album 4

Service Access Liaison Officer 5

VIC - New CALD Education Resource 5

NSW - Special Needs Liaison Officer—CALD Service Access 6

WA - Exploring Cultural Competence at the Individual Level

7

A r a b i c a n d A s s y r i a n Chaldeans 8

Host Homes 9

2011 Multicultural Health Communication Awards 10

Dementia Awareness Week CALD Activities 2011 11

M u l t i c u l t u r a l D e m e n t i a Network NSW 11

The French Lead the way on Dementia 11

September 2011 (Volume 6, Issue 2)

CULTURAL NE W S Alzheimer's Australia

N a t i o n a l C r o s s C u l t u r a l D e m e n t i a N e t w o r k N e w s l e t t e r

PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION IGNORES DEMENTIA

Page 2

Cultural News

THE NETWORK

CHAIRPERSON Pino Migliorino

NSW Yvonne Santalucia South West Sydney Area Health Service

Dr Desiree Boughtwood Western Local Health District

VIC Norminda Forteza Alzheimer’s Australia Vic

Jaklina Michael RDNS

Nicky Hayward-Wright K n o w l e d g e M a n a g e m e n t Consultant

Dr Dina LoGiudice Royal Park Campus Melbourne Health

QLD Dino Bazarbassis Nova Community Care

WA Frank Schaper Alzheimer’s Australia WA

Mary Andriotis St Basils Aged Care Services WA

ACT Lily Muthurajah Multicultural HACC

SA Gosia Skalban Domiciliary Care

TAS Ms Marianne Potma Migrant Resource Centre, Southern TAS

Danijela Hlis Italian Day Centre, Hobart

NT Dr Sadhana Mahajani ACAT Northern Territory

AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT Dr Annie Dullow Jenny Monge

ALZHEIMER’S AUSTRALIA Glenn Rees Anne Eayrs

SECRETARIAT Helena Kyriazopoulos

If implemented, these groups may also benefit from the Commission’s recommendations for funding for interpreter services, greater recognition of the rights and needs of o l d e r p e o p l e f r o m C A L D b ac k g r o und s , an d f o r t h e consideration of costs associated with providing care that meets the cultural and linguistic needs of clients. Despite these important recommendations, Alzheimer’s A u s t r a l i a b e l i e v e s t h a t recommendations to increase access to culturally and linguistically appropriate services for individuals from diverse groups must go beyond translation services, and needs to be done in partnership with the individuals from the communities that they are trying to assist.

This report is the first step in a long process of reform. The Government has committed to aged care reform in this term of Government, and is now considering how to respond to the report. It is the view of Alzheimer’s Australia, and most other stakeholders in this field, that we need action on aged care in the 2012 Federal Budget.

The Minister for Mental Health and Ageing, the Hon Mark Butler, has made it clear that the Productivity Commission is a starting point but the Minister has not ruled anything in or out in terms of reforms. He wants to take a wide ranging approach to the issue and link with other reforms happening in the health system. The Minister has indicated that he wants to hear first hand consumer views to inform the Government’s response to the report.

Alzheimer’s Australia has received funding from the Department of Health and Ageing to also conduct consultations. These will be held across Australia to gain an insight about the views of consumers on the topic of aged care reform. Consultations for CALD consumers will be held in both Melbourne and Sydney, but of course we encourage people from CALD backgrounds to attend other consultations.

Feedback from the consultations will be used by Alzheimer’s Australia to develop a report, for the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing, by the end of November. This report will be used to help shape the response of the Government to the Productivity Commission’s Recommendations. More information about the consultations, and how to RSVP, can be found at www.alzheimers.org.au o r y o u c a n e m a i l consultations@alzheimers.org.au

Alzheimer’s Australia believes that unless aged care reform has a response to the dementia epidemic at its heart, it will not be successful. To ensure that the voices of individuals with dementia are heard, Alzheimer’s Australia is about to embark on the ‘Fight Dementia’ campaign. You can find more information about the campaign, become a dementia champion and learn how you can help, at www.fightdementia.org

W e l o o k f o r w a r d t o a transformational reform of the aged care system that leads to better access, higher quality, and more choices for all older Australians.

Glenn Rees National Chief Executive Officer Alzheimers Australia

Page 3 (Volume 6, Issue 2)

NEW MEMBERS ON THE NATIONAL CROSS CULTURAL DEMENTIA NETWORK

Dr Dina LoGiudice, Geriatrician (consultant physician Aged Care) based at Royal Park Campus, Melbourne Health. Dina’s initial interest in dementia came when she completed a PhD on benefits of memory clinics for carers. Dina has worked in Memory clinics and then Cognitive, Dementia and Memory Services (CDAMS) for over 15 years, and has provided inpatient care for older people with dementia of different cultural backgrounds. Her interest in cross cultural issues arose with the need to assess many Italians who presented at Memory Clinics with cognitive and behavioural difficulties and as inpatients. She also initiated research in the Kimberley area (WA) addressing the issue of assessment and service needs for older Aboriginal Australians, which began in 2003 in collaboration with the WA Centre for Health and Ageing.

Ms Marianne Potma, Manager, Frail Aged Programs, Migrant Resource Centre, Southern Tasmania. Marianne is of Dutch descent, having migrated to Australia with her family as a child. She has worked in the CALD community aged care sector for over 15 years, and is currently managing the Partners in Culturally Appropriate Care, Community Partners Program, Community Aged Care Packages and Extended Aged Care at Home Dementia packages. Her greatest teachers in dementia have been her parents and family, as they supported each other throughout her father’s journey until his death three years ago.

Dr Desiree Boughtwood, is currently the Senior Multicultural Access Project Officer, Western Local Health District, Sydney, a role which aims to make HACC services more accessible to people from CALD backgrounds. Desiree was previously involved in a research project on dementia care-giving in CALD communities. She has worked as a drug and alcohol counsellor, and is currently Conjoint Lecturer at the University of New South Wales.

Danijela Hlis is currently working with the Italian Day Centre in Hobart and Independent Health Care as a bilingual Social Support Worker/Lifestyle and Leisure Coordinator. She volunteers with the Migrant Resource Centre and is an active member of Alzheimer’s Australia’s Consumer Dementia Research Network. Danijela is of Slovenian descent, having migrated to Australia in 1979, her parents later joining her in 1996. Danijela is fluent in five languages and has worked as a translator/interpreter in Paris, Rome, Geneva, London and Sydney, where she later completed her studies in Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations, and worked in this field for many years. She has cared for her frail parents since 1987 and continues to support her mother living with Dementia.

The full list of members is available on the website http://www.alzheimers.org.au/common/fi les/

As Chair of the National Cross Cultural Dementia Network it is my pleasure to welcome four new members on to the Network. Their experiences and depth of knowledge in the sector will add value to the work of the Network. I am pleased therefore to introduce:

Pino Migliorino, Chairperson, NCCDN Alzheimer’s Australia

Up & Coming Conferences Gerontology and Geriatrics 2011 Oct 23-27 2011 Melbourne Australia www.ageing2011.com 2011 National Dementia Research Forum Sep 22-23 2011 Sydney Australia http://www.dementiaresearch.org.au/

Page 3

Page 4 Cultural News

Alzheimer's Australia SA, in collaboration with The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, recently introduced a new initiative using the Talking Photo Album. The objective being to make the hospital experience and stay in residential care facilities less traumatic for people with dementia and their families.

The Talking Photo Albums are simple photo albums where 10-15 second voice snippets can be recorded for playback with each picture. Family members and carers of people with dementia can fill the books with photos of their loved ones and

with each photo a couple of reassuring sentences associated with their photo can be recorded. A lead volunteer, David at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Geriatric Evaluation and Management (GEM) Unit found the talking albums a fantastic tool to remind patients of home, family, friends, and it helps to reassure them should they become distressed. Often when people enter hospitals, in particular people with dementia and those who have a language difficulty, often find the experience difficult, and these books are an effective way of keeping them as comfortable and as stress free as possible.

The talking photo album is also particularly helpful for helping CALD clients who do not speak English. The talking album project is currently being trialled in 8 residential aged care facilities where the majority of the residents are from CALD backgrounds. The main objective of the project is to look into the benefits of using talking albums and whether they could help to enhance person centred care in dementia clients.

The talking album project is led by Geriatricians, Dr Faizal Ibrahim, Dr Shailaja Nair and the Team Leader of Access and Equity Unit, Alzheimer's Australia SA, Ms Helena Kyriazopoulos. For more i n f o r m a t i o n , p l e a s e c o n t a c t : helena@alzheimerssa.asn.au

TALKING ALBUM

Les Goodwin (front left) is pictured above with nurse Carla Smyth (front right) and GEM unit volunteers, Lorie Tenorio and Alan Bowyer using a talking photo book

Words from home...

The FECCA Biennial Conference is Australia’s pre-eminent multicultural conference. Every two years, the Conference draws together leading decision makers, thinkers and practitioners to discuss and debate key issues that relate to Australia’s cultural and linguistic diversity. These are explored through a series of plenary addresses, panel discussions and presentations. This year, the Conference will explore the theme of Advancing Multiculturalism and promises to be a vibrant and exciting program. Pre-Conference workshops will be held on Wednesday 16 November 2011.

For more information visit www.plevin.com.au/fecca2011/

Invitation From the Convenors

Page 4

Page 5 (Volume 6, Issue 2)

All State and territory Alzheimer’s Australia organisations believe that working with specific groups should be a part of core business, rather than thinking in terms of ‘special needs’ groups.

Alzheimer’s Australia recognises that the provision of quality dementia response involves identifying the special needs of each individual, carer and family affected by dementia.

In 2010-2011 Alzheimer's Australia received additional funding from the Federal Government through the National Dementia Support Program to establish Service Access Liaison Officers in each State and Territory to improve access to services for specific needs groups. This initiative was a recommendation of the National Evaluation of the Dementia Initiative. 11 projects have been funded in all jurisdictions with the exception of Tasmania which has been funded with Government approval to pilot a Restorative Therapies Project .

The other projects have a focus on developing more inclusive and/or individualized service responses to specific groups. These projects work in partnership with relevant service providers and other organisations to ensure that they meet their objectives.

The projects, which have been implemented in all states and territories, have concentrated on the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people (ATSI); people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse backgrounds (CALD); Gay, Lesbian, Bi-Sexual, Trans-gender and Intersex people (GLBTI); people in rural and remote locations (R&R); and people with Younger Onset Dementia (YOD). Three States have specific CALD projects, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, which are highlighted in the following articles.

Anne Eayrs National Special Groups Manager Alzheimers Australia

ALZHEIMER’S AUSTRALIA - SERVICE ACCESS LIAISON OFFICER

Page 5

AA VIC—NEW CALD EDUCATION RESOURCE 8 Things you need to know about dementia

With funding provided under a Service Access Liaison Officer supplementary grant from the Australian Government, Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria has recently developed an education resource to be used by its Staff when providing basic information sessions on dementia to community groups, most particularly those from CALD backgrounds.

The resource, which was piloted with both the Greek and Italian communities, is delivered as a one-hour session with the support of an interpreter and addresses the most commonly asked questions about dementia. These include an overview of the following:

▪ What is dementia?

▪ Important facts about dementia

▪ Who gets dementia

▪ Signs and symptoms of dementia

▪ How dementia is diagnosed

▪ Living with dementia

▪ Caring for someone with dementia

▪ Getting Help – an overview of Services and how to access them

The resource includes a CALD-friendly PowerPoint presentation that visually complements what the presenter is communicating. 8 information sheets have been developed for distribution to those attending. At this stage, these have been translated into Greek and Italian only – but it is envisaged that this material will become available in other languages in the future as more funding for translations becomes available.

While currently, the session is being delivered by Alzheimer’s Australia Vic. staff in Victoria only, it is hoped that this education resource may eventually be available for use by staff in Alzheimer organizations around Australia.

Requests for this session to be delivered in Victoria to your CALD community group should be addressed, in the first instance, to: Laurel Gourlay on (03) 9815 7864

Cultural News

AA NSW—SPECIAL NEEDS LIAISON OFFICER – CALD SERVICE ACCESS The main focus of the work is to develop a model for building capacity for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities to increase dementia knowledge, early diagnosis and access to services with particular attention to four ethnic communities; Cambodian, Serbian, Croatian and Assyrian. The project is also building upon previous work undertaken with the Spanish community.

People from CALD backgrounds under-utilise dementia services, and there is a lack of understanding about dementia among ethnic communities, with stigma associated with dementia in some communities creating an additional problem. New and emerging ethnic communities and refugee groups often have greater levels of unmet needs, as they are not as familiar with the service system and have not had time to establish their own services. Alzheimer’s Australia NSW (AANSW) is developing culturally appropriate approaches to improving awareness and understanding of dementia and access to services.

Bi-lingual, bi-cultural presenters work in tandem with AANSW educators in delivering community education that seeks to change community attitudes. Translating written information designed for an Australian educated, English speaking audience, doesn’t always mean that it is accessible, meaningful or culturally appropriate for dissimilar audiences. For this reason, new visual based education sessions that take into consideration the needs of CALD communities have been developed and presented to date to 11 different cultural language groups.

The project is working in partnership with Cambodian, Spanish, Croatian and Assyrian welfare agencies to develop a Train the Trainer model as a sustainable approach to increasing awareness of dementia. Stage 1 involves training bi-lingual and bi-cultural volunteer educators to co- present culturally sensitive community education, Stage 2 increases access to diagnosis by developing links to GPs who work with the community, Stage 3 increases access to culturally appropriate support and culturally sensitive carer

education, Stage 4 develops models of shared care and trains members of the community to provide support to people with dementia, their families and carers. The model is intended to have a cumulative impact.

This project has highlighted the gaps in multimedia resources available to assist in raising CALD community awareness of dementia and dispelling myths and false beliefs of the disease. In consultation with ethnic community focus groups, the project has explored in detail the priority issues and the best methods of generating a greater acceptance of information about a subject that many communities find unpalatable and confronting.

Funding was sought for the development of 4 language specific DVD’s using the award winning DVD concept ‘It’s not a disgrace – it’s dementia’ that focuses squarely on the premier barrier to the uptake of services: stigma and shame. The DVD productions will use Carers, professional workers and people of significant community standing speaking on dementia in their cultural language. This confers an authenticity and ‘user friendliness’ that is lacking in material not tailored explicitly to each culture.

Amongst refugee communities, the project recognises that those who have endured trauma, torture, incarceration and grief are at a higher risk of developing dementia. Therefore, the framework of the DVD expands to include risk reduction; focussing on the desirability of seeking grief counselling and early treatment of anxiety disorders and depression.

It is anticipated that once the DVDs are launched, early diagnosis and uptake of services will significantly increase as a result of using this social model of community engagement. For further information please contact:

Michelle Basic CALD Services Project AA NSW MBasic@alznsw.asn.au

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(Volume 6, Issue 2)

AA WA — EXPLORING CULTURAL COMPETENCE AT THE INDIVIDUAL LEVEL With cultural diversity here to stay and adding to the mosaic of beliefs, perspectives and culinary experiences in Australia, embracing diversity and making the most of the wealth of experience available requires cultural competence.

Part of the work of the Project Officer Multicultural Communities in AAWA has been exploring cultural competence at the individual level and incorporating this into the development of culturally responsive programs. In the Murdoch University Centre for Social and Community Research discussion paper on cultural competencies, the following aspects are highlighted:

▪ It is a continuous process that occurs across a life-time;

▪ It requires converting knowledge and good intentions into practical changes to behaviour that improve the quality of care cross-culturally;

▪ It is a mindful process that requires personal growth and commitment.

The logical sequence to individual cultural competency is awareness, knowledge, skills, which needs to happen in chronological order:

First an individual must become aware that they differ from other people, in their social behaviour, thought processes and assumptions.

Next an individual must learn to know their differences from people of different cultural backgrounds.

Then they need to learn the skills to communicate effectively with people from CALD backgrounds

There is an overarching aspect throughout the whole process that an individual needs to be motivated to treat people from any country in a way that those people appreciate.

The process of cultural competence begins with individuals and organisations examining personal

values, beliefs and practices in order to reduce the risk of cultural bias, cultural conflicts and the imposition of inappropriate or unethical care.

Cross-cultural misunderstanding is a much-underestimated cause of trouble. Cultures across the world share common concepts: friendship, love, respect, truth, honesty, honour, justice, trust, sensitivity, and many more. The concepts are shining and clear, our notions of them are different. People from different cultures view these concepts from different angles and perspectives, leading them to behave in a manner which we may consider irrational or even in direct contradiction of what we hold sacred. Conflicts arise as the result of the human tendency to interpret and evaluate behaviour before we understand it. Our lack of understanding and our willingness to stereotype, prevents us from interpreting behaviour accurately. The remedy is to increase our range of perception, to observe and suspend our interpretation (what we think) and evaluation (what we feel), and to ask for clarification when in doubt.

Cultural dimensions, and aspects of effective cross-cultural communication, including communication barriers and how to overcome them, were presented at the WA Dementia Training Study Centre, Negotiating the Maze workshop and the Uniting Church Homes Dementia Link Day in August. Most interpersonal misunderstandings can be traced back to breakdowns in communication. In order to become culturally competent and to provide culturally appropriate care, we need to communicate effectively with people who were raised in ways differing from our own.

Cultural competency is core to the work of the Project Officer Multicultural Communities AAWA.

Mihaela Safta, Project Officer Multicultural Communities AAWA mihaela.safta@alzheimers.org.au

Page 7

Alzheimer’s Australia www.alzheimers.org.au Alzheimer’s Disease International www.alz.co.uk Australian Government www.australia.gov.au

WEBLINKS

Cultural News

ARABIC AND ASSYRIAN CHALDEANS Celebrate Tastes to Remember

“There is a lack of awareness of what dementia actually is and disbelief around how quickly someone can deteriorate. Many elderly Assyrian Chaldeans have come from war torn countries or have been victims of the Armenian Assyrian and Pontiac Greek Genocide (1914 -1919 and 1919-1923) and suffer from symptoms of dementia (deterioration of memory and becoming fragile and helpless) which could be related to trauma”, according to VASS representative; Ninawa Younan, Aged Care Manager.

For service providers, it is equally important to appreciate the migration journey of this community. “Assyrian Chaldean community are commonly referred to as the indigenous people of the Middle East. Their history spans over 6,000 years to the Ancient Assyrian and Babylonian Empires which introduced the first set of laws and governance, system of writing, the wheel, the clock, astronomy, first cities etc. With a distinct culture and language (Aramaic) and one of the first communities to embrace Christianity, the community unfortunately due to persecution and civil conflict have undergone a diaspora - migrating to Europe, America and Australia to seek peaceful settlement, freedom and opportunities. The community speaks Assyrian Chaldean which stems from Ancient Aramaic as their native language. Many also speak Arabic, having been brought up in the Middle East.

On June 28, 2011 a community information day was lead by Meg Orton, AAV Counsellor and assisted by Lina Hassan, VASS Home and Community Care Staff. The event is a first in a series of dialogues, information exchange, and active listening to increase awareness about dementia, remove stigma and promote positive communication about this brain condition within the Arabic and Assyrian Chaldean

communities. The community feast was opened by Mr Sam Afra, Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria at the Community Hall in Newport, Victoria.

VASS is an ethno-specific agency that offer aged care support services which includes:

▪ Volunteer Social Support Program – Northern Regions of Melbourne

▪ Planned Activity Group – Newport

▪ Supported Access Pilot Programs – Northern Regions of Melbourne

▪ Social Support Groups – Arabic and Assyrian Chaldean (Information sessions, Community Trips)

▪ Intake, Assessment and Referral Service

▪ Culturally Appropriate Client Support

Norminda Forteza CALD Project Officer, Client Services AA Vic nforteza@alzvic.asn.au

Alzheimer’s Australia Vic in partnership with the Victorian Arabic Support Services (VASS) celebrate cultural heritage and start discussions about food and memory to increase awareness of the impact of changes in memory and thinking.

2011 AAG CONFERENCE: AGEING WELL TOGETHER: REGIONAL The 9th Asia/Oceania International Congress of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG) is being hosted by The Australian Association of Gerontology together with The New Zealand Association of Gerontology

23 - 27 October 2011—Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre

For details visit www.ageing2011.com

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Page 9 (Volume 6, Issue 2)

HOST HOMES

As the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) population ages, and the prevalence of dementia increases, there is a greater demand for innovative and flexible service models, particularly considering that people with dementia from a CALD background will commonly revert to their first language. It is therefore critical that opportunities are provided for people with dementia and their carers to have access to programs and services that are culturally and linguistically responsive. In particular, to create a space where participants can have a meaningful experience, feel understood, express themselves in their preferred language and engage in meaningful activities.

The Host Home model of care, based on the family day care model, is provided in the home of a qualified personal care worker or alternatively in the home of a registered volunteer. The Host Home program provides a day of leisure and culturally appropriate social activities for a small group of Greek speaking people who are experiencing early stages of dementia. The program also enables carers to have a regular, planned break and an opportunity to attend to other priorities including their own interests and well being.

The Home is a recognisable environment with familiar sights and sounds; the Greek TV Channels blaring in the background, the black and white photos of the arrival to Australia, pictures of family and friends, the garden with fresh produce growing

cucumbers and tomatoes “a snapshot of the past’. These common but simple items provide a sense of comfort and warmth to the visitor who can connect and share. In a sometimes unfamiliar world, for people with dementia the home culturally represents a place of comfort, a sense of belonging, a place where people experience social connectedness with the immediate and extended family. In addition it allows the community to offer their home for the program, offering hospitality which is paramount to the Greek way of life. The home instantly normalises the process of receiving services and support. Often, attending the Host Home acts as the first stepping stone into the broader service spectrum and provides carers with an opportunity to link with an organisation that can assist them to navigate the system. Staff are skilled in providing a positive environment and you will often see participants engaging in Greek dancing, singing along to Greek traditional songs, reminiscing, sharing a joke, laughing, celebrating significant cultural events, playing bingo, cards and memory games. Over time, the groups have collated a photo album of images from their time at the group, and it brings them joy to share the memories through these captured moments.

The program continues to offer a culturally responsive and appropriate service option which has been popular within the Greek community, evidenced by the expansion of the model across the Melbourne metropolitan regions. This has been credited to the partnerships with carer agencies that continue to fund and support the program in various ways, including the Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centre Southern Region, Uniting Care Community Options – Eastern Region and more recently Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centre / CarerLinks North.

For further information please contact Ms. Aliki Kyrkou, Community Services Manager at Fronditha Care on (03) 9495 2308.

“A fun, friendly environment where you can reminisce about the past while enjoying the present”

2011 NATIONAL DEMENTIAL RESEARCH FORUM 22 - 23 September 2011 | Wesley Conference Centre 220 Pitt Street Sydney

For further information visit: www.dementiaresearch.org.au

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Page 10 Cultural News

The Multicultural Health Communication Awards are celebrated every two years by the Multicultural Health Communication Services of the NSW Health Department to recognise information providers who assist health professionals communicate with culturally and linguistically diverse communities throughout NSW.

The five categories in this year’s awards were Fact Sheets, Brochures/Booklets or Patient Information Resources, Posters, Website Resources, and Audio or Visual Resources.

One of the winning resources was ‘Health Older Person’s Safety (HOPS): Home Hazards: A Falls Prevention Tool’. “Home Hazards” is the first in a series of tools designed to assist health and community workers working with older people, highlighting strategies on how falls can be prevented or at least mitigated.

Studies in Australia show that the incidence of falls in the elderly is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, injury related disabilities, hospitalisation and emergencies. Dr.Conforti, Director of Aged Care, Liverpool Hospital, states that 20% of the elderly who are taken to the emergency rooms are victims of a fall and in Aged Care Facilities over 50% have an average of one fall per year. To address this issue they expanded the Fall Prevention Program as a vital part of the overall system of care for their elderly clients. They recognised the need to establish a comprehensive training program of staff, clients, carers and family members. The Day Care Program at Fairfield provides a carer support service to over 350 clients of which 250 of these come from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds (Chinese, Vietnamese, Arabic, Spanish, Italian, Laotian, Assyrian, Polish, Filipino, Croatian, Macedonian, Serbian, and

Bosnian). The majority of CALD clients require language assistance in order to communicate effectively as they either lack fluency or understanding of the English language.

Given the diversity amongst the clientele it is imperative that staff convey a clear and universally understandable message on Fall Prevention. The team believed that the best way to communicate the strategy to their clients effectively was through the use of a mimed video, prepared by the team and entitled ‘Healthy Older People’s Safety (HOPS)’.

HOPS prominently highlights various environmental causes of falls and approaches on how these could be eliminated or at the very least, mitigated. The team believe the mimed video can be universally understood, regardless of linguistic or cultural background.

Copies of the video will be disseminated to their clients and family members as a teaching aid to help them recognize causes of falls and the variety of ways by which they can be prevented thus reducing hospitalisation. A significant reduction of falls would help maintain the quality of life of their aged clients and reduce the potential burden on families and the health care service.

For additional information please contact:

Nelly Tiga Coordinator of the Fairfield Multicultural Day Care nelly.tiga@sswahs.nsw.gov.au or Melinda Dimarco Senior Occupational Therapist, Liverpool/Fairfield Aged Care Service melinda.dimarco@sswahs.nsw.gov.au

2011 MULTICULTURAL HEALTH COMMUNICATION AWARDS

Australian Multicultural Foundation www.amf.net.au Cultural Diversity in Ageing www.culturaldiversity.com.au

Federation of Ethnic Communities Council (FECCA)

www.fecca.org.au

WEBLINKS

(Volume 6, Issue 2) Page 11

MULTICULTURAL DEMENTIA NETWORK NSW The Multicultural Dementia Network (MDN) aims to work collaboratively to improve the current service system for people living with dementia (PLWD) and their carers from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities across New South Wales with a focus on the high populations within the south-western Sydney region. The network is a partnership coordinated by Lynn Silverstone, Bankstown/Liverpool/Fairfield Dementia Advisor and Yvonne Santalucia, Multicultural Aged Equity Officer. The Objectives are: ▪ To develop an information stream on CALD

needs & service gaps to support planning and funding processes to address priority needs;

▪ To facilitate a central point for managing information on CALD resources;

▪ To increase partnerships between primary health and community service providers in the ongoing treatment, care & support of CALD

people with dementia and their carers; ▪ To promote greater awareness & appropriate

response to the needs of CALD people living with dementia, in the general community and among services providers;

▪ To improve links between ADHC, NSW Health and other stakeholders to ensure the needs of PLWD and their families in CALD communities are identified and addressed;

▪ To monitor and review the NSW dementia framework and other local plans with CALD strategies and provide recommendations for implementation;

▪ To provide a regular meeting opportunity for information sharing and self-development among MDN members.

For more information please contact:

lynette.silverstone@sswahs.nsw.gov.au or yvonne.santalucia@sswahs.nsw.gov.au

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has set a global precedent for government action on dementia. In his keynote presentation at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference held in France, in July, President Sarkozy spoke about the advances in dementia care, support and research in France. President Sarkozy has long been an advocate for increased funding for dementia. Since 2007, dementia has been a priority for France, and in 2008 the National Plan for Alzheimers and related diseases was released, which pledged over 1.6 billion Euros over 5 years. In his speech, Sarkozy highlighted key priority areas of the National Plan: care, support and research. The French Plan envisions a system in which “no Alzheimer’s patient is ignored, no family is left without support, and no line of research is neglected”. The Plan has already improved access to diagnosis, by creating 65 additional memory clinics, as reported in the June 2011 progress report. 444 hospital memory centres have been established across France,

giving more patients access to accurate and timely diagnoses. Dementia research was also given national priority, and in the Plan 200 million Euros was dedicated to research. By building a solid base of dementia researchers in France, they are making the commitment to finding effective treatments and preventative measures. Over 100 major research projects have already been funded. The Plan has taken action to increase dementia awareness and improve quality dementia care and increase access to respite services for carers. Although he acknowledges the country still has progress to make, the French President highlighted improvements such as progress in research and an increase in residential aged care facilities, hospital units and home support teams. The French President has called upon other governments to make Alzheimer’s a top health priority, and for international research collaborations to investigate the causes and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. F o r m e r e i n f o r m a t i o n h t t p : / /www.alzheimers.org.au/the-french-lead-the-way-on-dementia.aspx

THE FRENCH LEAD THE WAY ON DEMENTIA ALZHEIMER’S ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL CONFERNCE FRANCE JULY 2011

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Cultural News Victorian Dementia Awareness Week CALD Activities 2011 EVENT DATE PARTNER ORGANISATION AAV CONTACT / SPEAKER VENUE

DEMENTIA AWARENESS WEEK AT MOORLEIGH CENTRE

Tastes to Remember with a presentation on: Are you worried about your memory?

11 Sept

8 THINGS YOU KNOW ABOUT DEMENTIA

Arabic Seniors Club 19 Sept 11:00 - 12:30

Italian Seniors Club 19 Sept 11:00 - 12:30

Greek Seniors Club 1 20 Sept 11:00 - 12:30 Greek Seniors Club 2 21 Sept 11:00 - 12:30 Greek Seniors Club 3 22 Sept 11:00 - 12:30

Russian Seniors Club 22 Sept 1:30 – 2:30 Greek Seniors Club 4 23 Sept

11:00—2:30

New Hope Foundation

Glen Eira City Council

Moorleigh Senior Citizens Club

Contact:

Norminda Forteza, AAV

Peter Kalathas,

New Hope

Speakers:

AAV Counsellors

Moorleigh Multicultural Seniors Citizens Centre

Bentleigh

Cultural Diversity and Dementia Day, joint event with NARI and ECCV

16 Sept All day National Ageing Research Institute Grace Roberto Russell Kennedy Pty Ltd Melbourne

Brimbank Vietnamese Memory Lane Cafe 22 Sept 1:00 - 4:00 Brimbank Council Contact: Rosie Ball Sunshine

Brimbank Macedonian Memory Lane Cafe 23 Sept 12:00 -3:00 Brimbank Council Contact: Rosie Ball Sunshine

TASTES TO REMEMBER EVENTS

Community Feast, Tastes to Remember @ Damayan with Filipino Community

28 Sept 11:00 -1:00 Filipino Community Council of Victoria C o n t a c t : F i l i p i n o Community Council of Vic.

Speaker: Leanne Wenig

Footscray

Tastes to Remember EMR organised by the Inner Primary 23 Sept 9.45 - 2:00 Inner PCP network Members Speaker: Meg Orton Box Hill

Seniors Leadership Day Interactive discussion about dementia and memory changes with CALD seniors leaders in the region

21 Sept 10:00 - 3:00 Organised by the South Eastern Region Migrant Resource Centre

Contact: Anne Jones

Speaker: Trudy Neal

Dandenong

In addition to these events with DAW, The Greek Welfare Centre Victoria in partnership with AAV has established an on-going Dementia Session with their seniors club managed by the Orthodox church all around the state beginning October – March 2012. A total of 17 sessions with interpreters and a minimum of 40-100 seniors at a time all around Victoria. Contact: Ann Reilly (AAV), Norminda Forteza (AAV), on 1800 100 500 or Edmond Kaderoglou, (Australian Greek Welfare Centre Victoria) on 94866588