Report: Appraisal of Dementia Australia (Qld) Services for Elderly

This report provides an appraisal of the services offered by Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville, focusing on their effectiveness in supporting elderly patients. The report examines various programs, including counseling services, educational programs for carers, public seminars, and the "Living with Dementia Program." It emphasizes how these services promote inclusive practice and community engagement. The appraisal highlights the benefits of each service, such as improved understanding of dementia, strategies for coping with the condition, and the development of essential skills. The report also stresses the importance of resources like online education and information available through the internet. Overall, the report concludes that Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville plays a crucial role in managing dementia, promoting community action, and implementing evidence-based practices. The report uses references from peer-reviewed journals from 2014-2019 to support the arguments.

Running head: DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA (QLD) – TOWNSVILLE 1
Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA (QLD) – TOWNSVILLE 2
Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville
Most of the researchers across the globe have heavily concentrated on discussing
effective services for the management of dementia patients. These studies follow the fact that
dementia is becoming a prominent condition among elderly patients. However, very few of the
researchers concentrate on investigating the preexisting services within the medical setting.
Therefore, this paper is set as an appraisal to the dementia services practiced in Dementia
Australia (Qld) – Townsville.
Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville provides counseling services to the patients,
families, and their relatives. The counseling moment is a vital period which allows all the
respective parties to discuss fundamental issues regarding dementia. Dementia Australia (Qld) –
Townsville is made up of professional counselors who are skilled enough to provide practical
assistance, support, and advice to patients, their families, and relatives. The counseling program
promotes inclusive practice because it incorporates all the stakeholders in the learning process.
For instance, people in the early stages of dementia are the primary beneficiaries of the program
(Draper, & Withall, 2016). Also, the initiative includes carers of individuals with dementia and
friends. Furthermore, the program consists of family members like children, partners, and
spouse. The counseling program has a diversity of advantages in the management of patients
with dementia. Firstly, the program promotes an understanding of the ultimate impact of
dementia (Ledgerd et al., 2016). Secondly, the program aids in the identification of the courses
of action for living and coping with dementia. Thirdly, the program promotes planning of how to
care for the changes associated with dementia condition. Also, the program enables the family to
conclude the issues circumnavigating the management of dementia condition. Furthermore,

DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA (QLD) – TOWNSVILLE 3
counseling helps in dealing with feelings of stress and a mixture of emotions. Lastly, the
program is significant in making referrals for relevant assistance.
Often, a collaborative approach, through family conferences, is the initial step in making
sure that every individual concerned is at the same level of understanding. Also, the plan
promotes supportive assistance to the management of the condition (Moyle et al., 2016). This
counseling approach initiates a collective approach to finding resolutions in coping with the
disease. Thus, the program supports a cooperative approach to promoting wellbeing.
Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville provides educational programs to family carers.
They are at the forefront of providing evidence-based education programs. The education
programs ensure the carers and nurses have met respective qualifications (Dreier, Thyrian,
Eichler, & Hoffmann, 2016). Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville has highly skilled
facilitators and counselors who provide specialized dementia education to patients, families as
well as carers. Most importantly, plenty of courses are on offer. This makes them economical
and accessible to the respective stakeholders. In so doing, they lure diversity of groups, thus
promoting inclusive practice.
Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville organizes public seminars to educate individual
regarding dementia. Community seminars have proven to be significant in creating awareness
regarding the management of diseases. The workshops incorporate a diversity of participants,
thus promoting inclusive practice. Furthermore, the seminars promote community action, which
is a key principle in nursing practice. A typical example of the topics that are handled in the
seminars includes exploration of the link between dementia and nutrition. The seminars also

DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA (QLD) – TOWNSVILLE 4
present general talks about dementia. This is a very significant program in not only promoting
community action but also promoting inclusive practice.
Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville promotes the "Living with Dementia Program."
This is a significant program in developing inclusive practice. The program is associated with
plenty of advantages. Through, the program, participants can obtain vital information that aid not
only in the management of their condition but also the health of their family members, friends,
and relatives. The program also offers an opportunity to answer individual queries regarding the
disease. Through the program, individuals are able to meet through seminars and talk
confidentially to each other regarding the strategies of managing the condition. Also, people
share their feelings and experiences in a safe environment. Lastly, the program promotes
innovation and development of skills and abilities among participants. The program is located
throughout regional and metropolitan locations in Australia. Thus, the participants come from
diverse backgrounds. In so doing, the program serves a fundamental role in promoting inclusive
practice.
Finally, Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville has plenty of resources with vital
information about dementia. The information is not only limited to the pieces of literature in the
library but also extends to online education programs. The internet has played a fundamental role
in promoting education about dementia (Boots et al., 2014). Through the online program,
individual engage in research on various aspects, including the management of the condition and
online counseling (Richard et al., 2017). Thus, internet platforms play a fundamental role in
promoting inclusive practice (Sheth, Jaimini, & Yip, 2018).

DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA (QLD) – TOWNSVILLE 5
In conclusion, Dementia Australia (Qld) – Townsville services play a significant role in
the management of the condition. Not only do the services promote inclusive practice but also
enhance community engagement. Furthermore, the services promote the execution of an evince-
based practice.

DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA (QLD) – TOWNSVILLE 6
References
Boots, L. M. M., De Vugt, M. E., Van Knippenberg, R. J. M., Kempen, G. I. J. M., & Verhey, F.
R. J. (2014). A systematic review of Internet‐based supportive interventions for
caregivers of patients with dementia. International journal of geriatric psychiatry, 29(4),
331-344.
Draper, B., & Withall, A. (2016). Young-onset dementia. Internal medicine journal, 46(7), 779-
786.
Dreier, A., Thyrian, J. R., Eichler, T., & Hoffmann, W. (2016). Qualifications for nurses for the
care of patients with dementia and support to their caregivers: a pilot evaluation of the
dementia care management curriculum. Nurse education today, 36, 310-317.
Ledgerd, R., Hoe, J., Hoare, Z., Devine, M., Toot, S., Challis, D., & Orrell, M. (2016).
Identifying the causes, prevention, and management of crises in dementia. An online
survey of stakeholders. International journal of geriatric psychiatry, 31(6), 638-647.
Moyle, W., Bramble, M., Bauer, M., Smyth, W., & Beattie, E. (2016). ‘They rush you and push
you too much… and you can't really get any good response off them': A qualitative
examination of family involvement in the care of people with dementia in acute care.
Australasian journal on ageing, 35(2), E30-E34.
Richard, E., Andrieu, S., Mangialsche, F., Barbera, M., Beishuizen, C., Brayne, C., ... & van
Charante, E. P. M. (2017). Healthy ageing through internet counseling in the elderly
(HATICE): an ongoing randomized controlled trial. Alzheimer's & Dementia: The
Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 13(7), P1198-P1199.
Sheth, A., Jaimini, U., & Yip, H. Y. (2018). How will the Internet of Things enable augmented
personalized health?. IEEE intelligent systems, 33(1), 89-97.