Indigenous Dementia Services Study (IDSS)

This project is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC).

Models of care to address unmet needs of older Indigenous people with dementia, their families and communities in remote Northern Australia

The purpose of the Indigenous Dementia Services Study (IDSS) is to find practical solutions that can be implemented to meet the needs of Indigenous people with dementia and their families who live in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The Kimberley lies in the northernmost region in Western Australia. It is approximately the twice the size of Victoria and is home to over 13,500 Indigenous Australians (25% of the states Indigenous population), with 2,000 older than 45 years old. The Kimberley has 6 towns and over 200 Aboriginal communities and outstations and a wide geographical diversity with coastal, desert ranges and saltwater and freshwater areas.

There were no appropriate screening tools to assess cognition in Indigenous people with diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. IDSS researchers have conducted research to address this need.

IDSS will focus on establishing what the current service delivery practices are and identify the gaps that exist for Indigenous people with dementia and their carers.

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