Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week I attended a community information session on dementia in the rural township of Lowood in my electorate of Blair. This is one of those occasions where my roles as a local member of parliament and as a shadow minister overlapped perfectly. The session was organised by Kate Hawkins of Alzheimer's Australia (Queensland). Kate is from Lowood. With her warm and supportive parents she is establishing a friendship group for families and friends of those living with dementia. This is important for a number of reasons.

Dementia is on track to become the leading cause of disability in Australia in the next few years. It is the third leading cause of death in Australia behind heart disease and stroke. After the age of 65 the likelihood of living with dementia doubles every five years. About 1,576 people in Ipswich and the Somerset region in the electorate of Blair suffer from dementia. That figure is due to increase dramatically over the next 30 to 40 years. A dementia tsunami is on the way, but the problem is dire now. Just now dementia costs our global community $600 billion annually. If dementia were a country it would have the world's 18th largest economy. In Australia there are about 320,000 people living with dementia. By 2050 there will be about one million Australians and about 5,000 locally in Blair living with dementia.

The Lowood community information session was aimed at increasing the awareness of dementia, improving people's understanding of prevention and helping people live well with dementia. As Kate appreciates, people in rural communities find it hard to access services. These friendship groups are vital. I want to commend the Somerset Regional Council for supporting this terrific work. It was great to see Mayor Graeme Lehmann and Councillor Dan Hall at the event. The event attracted a great turnout and together we played memory games, shared experiences and learnt a great deal about dementia. I must confess that I was not too good at some of the memory games. We had the great privilege of also listening to Gold Coast based geriatrician Dr Mohammed Khateeb, who was both entertaining and interesting. The doctor reminded us that dementia is not a normal part of ageing and that ageing is not something we should fear. We all want to live longer and better, and the only way we can do that is by ageing.

So I commend the work of Alzheimer's Australia Queensland for its commitment to ensuring that people living with dementia located outside metropolitan areas receive appropriate advice, friendship and help. It is important for all of us to understand that dementia affects all families in our communities, across every electorate. People living with dementia will benefit from early diagnosis, earlier treatment and greater friendship. I commend Alzheimer's Australia for the great work they do and congratulate them, and also the Lowood community, for a successful and informative event.