John Williams (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Assistant Minister for Health, Senator Nash. Can the minister advise the Senate on current government funding for dementia research and how this funding can potentially reduce the rising trends and prevalence of dementia in Australia?

Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Williams for his question. There are more than 320,000 Australians living with dementia, making it the third leading cause of death in Australia. Around 1.2 million Australians care for those 320,000 people diagnosed with dementia. By 2050, without a medical breakthrough, it is expected that dementia will affect nearly one million Australians and an untold number of carers. To put that in context, currently each week there are around 170 new cases of dementia in Australia. This is expected to grow to 7½ thousand new cases each week by 2050, which is a staggering statistic. That is a huge cost to the health sector. But, even more importantly, it is a huge burden on Australian people and families.

That is why this government has delivered on our election commitment to inject an additional $200 million over five years into research into the prevention and treatment of dementia. The government understands the crucial role of research into finding new treatment options, improved methods of prevention and early diagnosis, and ways to improve quality of life for patients diagnosed with dementia and their carers. This unprecedented $200 million investment will go a long way to help to curb the alarming rise in dementia in Australia by significantly scaling up dementia research across Australia, increasing the number of researchers focusing on dementia research and providing a vehicle for translating research efforts into patient care.

This government is committed to improving the lives of Australians affected by dementia and we have clearly demonstrated that commitment by fostering world-leading, patient focused research through this $200 million boost in dementia research funding.

John Williams (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the minister for her answer. That is good news. Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister update the Senate on how the government's funding of dementia research will put Australia at the forefront of dementia research?

Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The government's $200 million funding boost for dementia research has several specific focuses. An NHMRC national institute for dementia research will be established to target, coordinate and translate the national research effort to bring about a future of better care for people with dementia. The institute will be a virtual one with a network of members to support it. The funding will also be utilised to urgently scale up the research effort through the funding of collaborative research projects, focusing on Australian and internationally identified dementia priorities. We also know that one of the pressing issues in dementia research is the workforce, and for this reason part of the $200 million funding boost will be dedicated to building capacity in the dementia research sector through the awarding of early career fellowships and postgraduate scholarships to attract more researchers into dementia research. These streams will work together to position Australia at the forefront of the international dementia research effort.

John Williams (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Can the minister advise the Senate how the government's boost to dementia research will help those who are diagnosed with dementia and their carers?

Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Around 200 Australians per day will come in touch with either a diagnosis for dementia or will be a carer for a person newly diagnosed with dementia. That is a huge burden on Australian people and families. The increased investment in dementia research will help to speed up the process of finding treatments for those experiencing dementia and hopefully the finding of a cure. The $200 million funding boost will also speed up the translation of research into improved patient care and support, which in turn will help ease the burden currently placed on carers who are providing support to those suffering from this terrible disease. The government is proud of this record investment in dementia research and all Australians will look forward to breakthroughs that are achieved in this vital area of research.