Emma McBride (Dobell, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health) Share this | Hansard source

Firstly, I'd like to say thank you to the member for Newcastle and to her father, Kevin. Dementia is heartbreaking and it touches too many Australian families. There are many thousands of people living with dementia across Australia and there are hundreds of thousands of others who love and care for them. In my community on the Central Coast of New South Wales there are some 6,000 people living with dementia and 20,000 people who are involved in their care.

As others have said, dementia is the second leading cause of death in Australia, right behind heart disease. For Australian women, dementia is the leading cause of death. It affects one in 10 people aged over 65, but dementia isn't just an illness of older people; if affects younger people too, like my late father. Every day, another 250 people are diagnosed with dementia and, tragically, we lose 36 people to dementia. Unfortunately, these numbers are set to grow in the coming years unless something changes. That's why it's so important for us to raise awareness. The more we talk about dementia, the more we can reduce its stigma and create a better future for Australians living with dementia and those who love them.

We all have a role to play in creating dementia-friendly communities where everyone belongs, but one of the most important roles is that of carer. Carers do an incredible job, but their job has been made a lot tougher during the pandemic. Over the past 18 months, in-home support and day programs have been wound back or closed because of lockdowns. People living with dementia have struggled with isolation and loneliness, and so have carers like Liz. I spoke to Liz recently. She cares for her mum, who's living with dementia in residential aged care on the Central Coast. This year was really tough for Liz because she wasn't able to visit her mum for months. She could only talk to her through an iPad, and one time her mum went to pass her a cup of tea through the iPad. It's just devastating. She told me: 'During this time, our mother's older sister passed away and, only six days later, her youngest brother also passed away. We never had the chance to tell our mother of the loss of her siblings.' She told me she understands COVID-19 restrictions, but she said, 'These measures fail to include or address the immense impact that the absence of family visits is having on our parents' health and mental state.' On a personal note, she said her own mental health was exacerbated and that she started to suffer panic attacks and high levels of anxiety from being denied access to her frail mother. This lockdown has been tough. As Liz said to me, everybody wants the best of care for their parents, but more needs to be done to help carers, who only want the best for their loved ones.

Families around Australia have been touched by dementia, and, as I said, my family is no different. I lost my grandma Molly to dementia when I was in my early 20s. I also lost my dad, Grant, to younger onset dementia when he was just 68 years old. That's why I made a promise to my mum, Barbie, that I would do everything I could for people living with dementia and those who love them. In honour of my dad, I decided to start the Grant McBride Memory Walk and Jog to support the important work of Dementia Australia and to raise awareness of and support for those who live in regional Australia with dementia.

This year, we held the fourth annual Grant McBride Memory Walk and Jog, the second in a row held virtually. With most of New South Wales under stay-at-home orders and with lockdown fatigue kicking in across the coast, I really wasn't sure how many people would get involved, but Coasties joined in droves, showing their big hearts and generous spirit. I was hoping to raise about $5,000 to start with. Instead, we almost tripled our fundraising target, raising close to $15,000 for Dementia Australia. It's an incredible effort from communities under strain through COVID, and I'm so grateful to everyone who got involved.

This event is about raising awareness. It's also about people feeling less alone and encouraging people to get active. I spent most of the day walking in my local neighbourhood with my friend Ali and her dog Polly, but I also saw plenty of other people getting out and about, too, like my old primary school teacher Sue Jarrett; dad's good friends Luigi and Georgette Bruni and their daughter Gina; Ross Fraser, who was running for his wife, Sue, and raised over $1,500; friends from Toowoon Bay Surf Life Saving Club Patrol 2—thank you Karen and your daughter Claudia; and from Long Jetty Landcare—thank you to Carly, Chris, Matilda, Georgia, Isabella and Patrick, who did a COVID-safe eight kilometres. I'm so pleased to say that, over the past four years, since the event first began, we've managed to raise over $61,000 for Dementia Australia. These funds will go such a long way towards helping us find a cure, and I'm grateful to everyone who's helped promote this important cause.

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