In creative storytelling, a small group of people who have dementia get together for the purpose of creating a story. The freedom to imagine, to say anything, inspires people to be active participants, to be creative, spontaneous, and playful, to be storytellers. The process...read more

The number of people with dementia in the general population in NZ is increasing, but the number of people with intellectual disability who have dementia is increasing at a much faster rate than the general population. The estimated number of people with dementia in the ...read more

Two of our members are presenting papers at the Alzheimers Disease International (ADI) conference in Chicago July 26-19 2018.Beth McDougall’s (BUPA) paper is called: “From flashing lights to poetry: First steps to a dementia-friendly Rotorua, New Zealand. This paper will b...read more

Talking about dementia My mother once told me in a hushed voice that one of our neighbours might have TB. My mother-in-law spoke behind her hand of epilepsy (“E-P” she called it). Then, it was considered ...read more

  Dental hygiene can be a challenge for people with dementia and those who support them. Mouth problems- teeth and gum can lead to poor nutrition, infection and pain and subsequent changes in behaviour. Dr O’Connor, Bill O'Connor is the Dental Association presiden...read more

  HAVE YOUR SAY ABOUT DEMENTIA You will be aware that the mental health inquiry is underway. Submissions are due by 5pm Friday 05 June 2018. read more

Poetry is an excellent way of connecting people, and it has shown itself to be a powerful approach to reconnecting with people who are having difficulty communicating.Poetry is an invaluable creative outlet for everyone involved, whether you are the person living with a cog...read more

Dementia and “assisted dying”I have recently been writing a submission for the End of Life Choice Bill promoted by David Seymour. This is the third such bill to go before Parliament – Michael Laws’ Death with Dignity and Maryan Street’s End of Life Options Bill pre...read more

 People with dementia like other citizens of New Zealand have a right and obligation to vote in the general election. You can enrol to vote if:·         you are 18 years or older AND·       &nbs...read more

There are all sorts of extra costs if you are living with, or supporting someone dementia. This topic, Disability Allowance, came up in a conversation about the (high) price of continence products. Dementia qualifies as a disability because it lasts more than 6 months. ...read more

Head injury and dementia: Rugby players and coaches are now taking concussion seriously since a number of old All Blacks have been diagnosed with dementia. Head injury has long been known to be a risk factor for progressive cognitive impairment.  It may reduce “co...read more

Members of the NZDC might also be interested in joining the New Zealand Association of Gerontology , " a multidisciplinary organisation committed to understanding ageing and promoting the interests of older people".gerontology.org.nzIf you join soon you could be part of the Inaug...read more

“Thank goodness it’s just dementia” says a recently-diagnosed women. “I was afraid it was Alzheimer’s.”“Why are these people from Alzheimers visiting me when I have frontotemporal dementia?” complains the ex-boxer.  These are a couple of examples of the con...read more

When speaking of “alternative” treatments we are usually talking about non-standard treatments, those not prescribed by doctors.  With a condition like dementia, that can be devastating and for which there is no cure, there are bound to be many people offering unteste...read more

The 2016 World Alzheimer Report warns that countries like New Zealand are unprepared for a surge in dementia cases and need to take urgent action to deal with the issue.The Report was researched and authored by a team led by Prof Martin Prince of the Global Observatory for Ageing...read more

NZ Dementia Summit Report 2015Please access the report here http://nzdementia.org/framework/11/resources The NZ Dementia Cooperative (NZDC), Alzheimers NZ and Carers NZ present the final report and recommendations from the 2015 NZ Dementia Summit. The 2016 World ...read more

Alzheimers NZ has just published the second edition of Thinking Dementia, our newsletter on recent research and policy development. This newsletter's first issue was a runaway success and very quickly many interested people subscribed to Thinking Dementia. Have a read and if you'...read more

As the rain stops and spring seems to be on the way, I can finally sit in the garden and contemplate the growth, the colours and the birds. Even when I have advanced dementia, I think I will enjoy the outdoors and hate being kept inside. Recently I went to the Hammondcare confere...read more

Sleepiness & Fatigue Linked to Brain Atrophy in Cognitively Impaired Elderly Just wondering if anyone seen this study and what they thought about it - it has come out of the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging, and studied 1,374 cognitively normal elderly aged...read more

Waikato DHB and Callaghan Innovation join forces to speed up medical trials for the elderly. Waikato District Health Board and the governments innovation agency Callaghan Innovation have teamed up to tackle the problem of slow clinical trials in medical technology aimed at the el...read more

Three diseases, leading killers of Americans, often involve long periods of decline before death. Two of them — heart disease and cancer — usually require expensive drugs, surgeries and hospitalizations. The third, dementia, has no effective treatments to slow its course.So w...read more

A South Island programme promoting awareness about dementia to primary care practitioners is aiming to boost the role of general practice in referring patients to support services.Primary Care Dementia Education Project coordinators in Canterbury have been working since May with ...read more

As the first book published in New Zealand to address many of the legal issues encountered by NZ’s ageing population in a single reference work, Elder Law provides readers with a comprehensive view of a complex legal landscape. Accessible and essential reading for legal and med...read more

Developed by the Driving With Dementia Working Group, Auckland DHB, Counties DHB, Waitamata DHB Revision 2014.As health clinicians we are under an obligation to consider the driving safety of our patients and to deal with any risk to themselves or others from unsafe driving, espe...read more