Dementia Dialogues with DTA

Aggression isn’t a sudden personality change for someone living with dementia - it’s often their brain finding new ways to communicate or react when a situation feels overwhelming. It might stem from frustration, fear, confusion, or a sense of being unsafe. Understanding why aggression occurs is crucial, not only for the wellbeing of the person living with dementia but also for the safety and conf...

At some point, or another, we've all likely experienced the feeling of losing our bearings - maybe even the anxiety and fear that follows. Now imagine that constantly, because you’re a person living with dementia. What if there was a way to reduce the potential for that feeling? Well, there is. And it has everything to do with the physical space, the design of the environment, and how we think abo...

When we think about a dementia diagnosis, it’s easy to associate care with doctors and nurses, living facilities and how various changes are going to impact the loved ones of a person living with dementia. But just like with any stage of life, there are multiple areas of care that are essential to improving and maintaining health and wellbeing. Enter Allied Health - from occupational therapy and s...

People living with dementia are at risk of getting lost — especially if they also wander. But did you know these are two distinct behaviours? In this episode, we dive deep into the differences between wandering and getting lost, why they happen, and how we can reduce the risks. We’re joined by DTA's Changed Behaviour expert, Margaret MacAndrew, for an insightful conversation. Whether you're a care...

For the final part of our 3 part series of Stan Sharkey and his life, made possible by our sit down interview with his daughter Emma (and yes, her beautiful newborn son Cooper) we’ll be discussing Stan’s transition into full time care, the importance of care from the perspective of a loved one, and how diagnosis doesn’t have to become how they’re defined, even after they’re gone.  We’d like t...

Sometimes when you’re involved in the care of a person living with dementia, and you didn’t know them before diagnosis, it’s easy to forget there was usually a sign, or a tipping point, or a moment in time for their loved ones that lead to getting further answers.   And for so many, that part is the scariest for someone who knew them before. In this part of our sit-down interview with Stan’s...

We all know that when someone we care about gets a diagnosis of dementia, that sometimes it’s hard to think about anything else; that everything from that moment on becomes about their care, because it’s so important to their wellbeing. But like we’ve touched on in previous episodes, really knowing a person is a great place to start caring for them. After all, a dementia diagnosis isn’t a person’s...

Changed behaviour, if misunderstood, can sometimes seem like a frustrating and maybe even scary symptom of living with dementia - especially for loved ones and carers. On this episode, we’ll be looking at changed behaviour; what it is, how it presents and how understanding and education can help minimise the possibility of resulting negative experiences for people living with dementia and those wh...

On this episode, we’ll be delving into the condition of delirium and how it affects those living with dementia - including the murky nature of how it presents itself, the possibility of subsequent misdiagnosis, and how education about delirium can help support workers improve care for people living with dementia.  Dementia Training Australia would like to show our respect and acknowledge the...

On this Episode, and in honour and recognition of National Volunteer Week – with the key message for 2024 being “Something for everyone” - we’ll be exploring the importance of volunteers in the dementia care space, the role they play in ensuring quality care is provided to those living with dementia, and how dementia education can provide knowledge and confidence to these often thankless but essen...

DTA’s mission is to improve the knowledge and skills of the workforce who support people living with dementia and their carers. We focus on evidence-based standards in the development and delivery of practical education and learning pathways for individuals and organisations. And to expand on that delivery of practical education, we’ve launched this podcast series... Theme song: Sun Therapy - Sum...