Australia's population is ageing.  An ageing population will continue to place additional burdens on the capacity of the health and aged care service systems.  The medical professions are facing additional pressures associated with neuro-degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and dementia.  Furthermore, over 80 per cent of the illness burden in Australia is caused by the development of chronic and complex conditions.  These conditions are more prevalent in the elderly (which is only 55 years of age in the Indigenous population) and include cardiovascular disease, diabetes, dementia, blindness due to cataracts and many others.

The Australian Government recognises the profound effects that diseases such as dementia has on those living with the condition, their carers & families and the community as a whole.  In recognition the Coalition Government will invest $200 million over four years for dementia specific programs.

There has been incredible research into various conditions associated with ageing.  Much of this research is being undertaken in collaboration with Divisions of General Practice.  Below are Division specific programs and links to specific research documents.

Dementia:

Central Coast Division of General Practice - A Dementia Care Guide for General Practitioners Time to think about Dementia
New England Division of General Practice
Wide Bay Division of General Practice
Southcity GP Getting Across Dementia

Alzheimer's Australia Help Sheets & Update Sheets http://www.alzheimers.org.au/content.cfm?topicid=26
Alzheimer's Australia & Department of Health and Ageing: Living with Memory Loss Program http://www.health.gov.au/internet/wcms/publishing.nsf/Content/ageing-publicat-livmem.htm
Alzheimer's Australia run regular education and training sessions for consumers and health professionals.  This is the link for training targetted at health professionals http://www.alzheimers.org.au/content.cfm?topicid=84.  The Dementia Competency Training Resource Kit http://www.alzheimers.org.au/content.cfm?infopageid=1006&CFID=1142843&CFTOKEN=22231264
Pfizer & Alzheimer's Australia Look Forward Program
Rural Health Education Foundation - http://www.rhef.com.au/index.html
          Dementia Series
          1.  Dementia: What's it all about?
          2.  Dementia: Early Diagnosis and the Role of GPs
          3.  The Dementia Continuum:  How to manage it
          4.  Dementia:  What Difference Does Person-Centred Care Make?
          5.  Dementia and the Aged Care Worker

          A Palliative Approach in Aged Care Facilities
NSW Health - Care of Patients with Dementia in General Practice Guidelines
Pfizer - Grey Matters Dementia Notebook - A practical guide to diagnosing, assessing and managing dementing illness in general practice
Aricept - Evaluating patients with Alzheimer's disease - a GP's guide to common assessment scales

Osteoporosis:

Mid North Coast (NSW) Division of General Practice

Falls Prevention:

SA Health - Don't fall for it. Falls can be prevented! A guide to preventing falls for older people.  

Continence:

Rural Health Education Foundation (RHEF) - Continence Series  http://www.rhef.com.au/index.html
          1.  Continence: What's it all about?
          2.  Continence and the General Practitioner
          3.  Continence and Aged Care
          4.  Continence and Women's Health

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