Joining forces to help make a Dementia Friendly society! Acting Deputy Commissioner Alistair Dawson and QPS Dementia Friends with Dementia Australia Ambassadors The Veronica, Queensland Police says
The Queensland Police Service is partnering with Dementia Australia to help increase awareness and understanding of dementia through the Dementia Australia Dementia Friends program.
The QPS is the first of Australia’s policing bodies to be involved in this nation-wide initiative, with the announcement made in Brisbane on September 4 as part of Dementia Awareness Month, which runs throughout September.
Today’s event was attended by members of the community, people with dementia and their carers and many QPS officers who have already signed up as Dementia Friends.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Alistair Dawson APM formally represented the QPS and presented at a panel discussion along with Dementia Australia Ambassadors Jessica and Lisa Origliasso from The Veronicas, Dementia Advocates Eileen and Dubhglas Taylor and Dementia Australia CEO Maree McCabe.
Commissioner Ian Stewart said the partnership between the QPS and Dementia Australia was an important part of the QPS commitment to collaborating with non-government agencies and community groups to make Queensland safer for all members of the community.
“Engaging with an organisation such as Dementia Australia will build QPS capacity to understand and assist people with dementia, their families and carers,” Commissioner Stewart said.
“These partnerships help to underpin the future policing direction for vulnerable persons, which envisages a more holistic ‘person centric’ approach where the individual and their unique circumstances are considered in all aspects of the response.”
The Dementia Friendly Communities campaign seeks to improve broader understanding and support for dementia by asking people to undertake basic online training to become Dementia Friends.
The training provides Dementia Friends with the knowledge to recognise dementia and help people living with dementia, supporting inclusion and independence within.
It supports the vision of Dementia Australia, enabling and empowering people living with dementia, their families and their carers.
People living with dementia can find it challenging to participate actively in the community due, in part, to a lack knowledge or understanding of the condition among the general public.
The goal is to have 20,000 people across Australia sign up as Dementia Friends.
Members of the QPS have already signed up to be Dementia Friends, hoping to lead the community by example and gain useful knowledge in dementia awareness and how best to assist people living with dementia.
This will improve the ability for the QPS and the Queensland community to assist the increasing number of people around us living with dementia, and help them be accepted and connected in society.
To sign up to be a Dementia Friend, go to dementiafriendly.org.au – it’s a small action that can make a big difference.
For more information on Dementia Awareness Month, and to find out what local events are happening near you, visit dementia.org.au.
