1. Let’s CHAT – Dementia: Primary care model of care to optimise detection and management of dementia in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander older people: Determination of the risk factor profile in this population
- Author
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Hughson, J, Flicker, L, Smith, K, Bradley, K, Belfrage, M, Strivens, E, Bessarab, D, Atkinson, D, Radford, K, Russell, SG, Quigley, R, Allan, W, Malay, R, Sullivan, K, Ducker, B, LoGiudice, D, Hughson, J, Flicker, L, Smith, K, Bradley, K, Belfrage, M, Strivens, E, Bessarab, D, Atkinson, D, Radford, K, Russell, SG, Quigley, R, Allan, W, Malay, R, Sullivan, K, Ducker, B, and LoGiudice, D
- Abstract
Background Rates of dementia and cognitive impairment in Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations are 3‐5 times higher than in the overall population. In addition, under‐detection of these conditions has been consistently confirmed, particularly in primary care. A national co‐design project called the Let’s CHAT (Community Health Approach To) Dementia aims to optimise detection rates and management of dementia and cognitive impairment in Indigenous primary care contexts. This will occur through the co‐development of a model of care, and outcome measures include data profiling the dementia risk of older Indigenous persons and current management of patients with confirmed or suspected cognitive impairment or dementia Method Six‐monthly medical record audits of patients aged 50 and over recording: basic demographic information, presence of dementia risk factors, current care practices in relation to dementia and co‐morbid conditions of ageing. Result Audits were conducted on patients (n=1675) in 12 primary health services across Australia. The mean age of patients was 60.3 (8.3). The top ten risk factors documented overall were: hypertension (50.9%), polypharmacy (46.7%), current smoking (43%), diabetes (42.9%), dyslipidaemia (41.1%), obesity (35%), depression (30%), mental health concerns (25.9%) cardiovascular disease (25.6.%) and low physical activity (19.1%), but there was some inter‐service variation in risk factor profiles. Documented evidence of health service assessment for, and investigation of, cognitive impairment was limited. Use and type of diagnostic tools varied widely between services (e.g. MMSE used with 0.6%‐45.9% of sample, KICA (culturally appropriate cognitive assessment tool) used with 0.0%‐5.0% of sample). Diagnoses of dementia and cognitive impairment (combined = 3.8%) are well below known prevalence rates in these populations (∼20%), although there is variation from service to service (range = 0.8% ‐8.9%). Conclusio
- Published
- 2020