Hearing and/or vision impairments affect over 70% of people receiving home care, and around 10% of home care recipients have dementia and 70% have mild cognitive impairment. Home care provided by professional caregivers enables older Australians to remain engaged and connected to their communities and to carry on living in their own home rather than needing to move to a residential aged care setting. Supporting people in their own homes rather than in residential aged care also reduces care costs.
People with hearing and vision impairments alongside dementia experience greater limitations in functional ability. Reduced independence and functional ability due to sensory impairment increases risk of transition to residential aged care. Hearing and vision impairments in people with dementia also impact on carers of people with dementia, increasing social isolation, depression, relationship stress and care burden.
Addressing hearing/vision impairments offers a cost-effective, acceptable, and valued opportunity to improve outcomes and quality of life for people with dementia and carers.
In this project, researchers will develop and evaluate a holistic and multidisciplinary hearing/vision home-based intervention for people with dementia. Researchers will collaborate with people with dementia, carers, aged care providers and hearing/vision professionals to deliver this project.
The questions this project will answer are:
- How should a holistic and multidisciplinary hearing/vision intervention be adapted for people with dementia in Australian home care settings?
- Does the intervention improve quality of life for people with dementia and their carers, and enable people to continue living in their own homes rather than moving into residential aged care?
Project members
Project Lead
Associate Investigators
- Ms Emma Scanlan
- Mr Lachlan Green
- Dr Leander Mitchell
- Dr Rebecca Bennett
- Assoc Prof Melanie Ferguson
