NARI, QUT secure MRFF grants for dementia research

Independent, non-profit medical research centre the National Ageing Research Institute has received a $2.9 million grant from the Medical Research Future Fund to improve care for culturally and linguistically diverse carers and people living with dementia.

Dedicated to ageing, health and aged care research, NARI will use the MRFF Dementia Ageing and Aged Care Mission Grant for the translational research project iSupport Digital intervention for CALD family carers and people living with dementia.

NARI principal research fellow Associate Professor Tuan Anh Nguyen will lead the study alongside multiple partner organisations including Dementia Australia and the World Health Organisation.

He said multiple community ethno-specific aged care providers across Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia will also be involved, including the Australian Vietnamese Women’s Association, Victorian Arabic Social Services, Spectrum, Co.As.It, CASS Care, Chung Wah Community Care, and the Association for Culturally Appropriate Services.

The project will co-develop a culturally informed, evidence-based digital health intervention – iSupport-D – for family carers of people living with dementia in CALD communities, Dr Nguyen told Australian Ageing Agenda, along with a companion version for multicultural and ethno-specific aged care staff. The project will also evaluate the program’s effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and implementation strategies.

“We’re working to address challenges for culturally and linguistically diverse Australian carers of people with dementia who lack caregiving skills and have trouble accessing culturally appropriate services. Together with CALD stakeholders, we’ll develop iSupport-D, a digital health solution tailored to the needs of carers to pinpoint effective strategies that improve access, reduce distress, and enhance care quality,” he said.

While Dr Nguyen said engaging CALD carers may be challenging, their team has extensive experience working with CALD communities and a strong track record in co-designing with them impactful dementia initiatives.

The project will go for five years and involve:

• convening a CALD stakeholder advisory group of carers, policymakers, and service providers to govern, adapt, disseminate, and facilitate access to the iSupport-D program
• co-creating iSupport-D, a culturally adapted, multimedia digital health, carer intervention in five languages plus English, and its companion version for care staff
• trialling iSupport-D in a parallel randomised controlled trial comparing iSupport-D to usual care to assess its effectiveness and cost-effectiveness
• evaluating the implementation of iSupport-D, including measures of acceptability, fidelity, and feasibility.

“As Australia’s national leader in ageing research, NARI is proud to receive this major MRFF Dementia, Ageing and Aged Care Mission Grant. The funding will support a program to improve access to quality care for CALD people living with dementia and their carers – enhancing quality of life, reducing carer distress, and improving cost-effectiveness of care,” Dr Nguyen told AAA.

“NARI remains committed to advocating for full research funding to ensure sustainable, life-changing medical research that leaves no one behind.”

iSupport is a World Health Organisation global online intervention for informal carers of people with dementia and the generic version of iSupport is freely accessible at www.isupportfordementia.org.

QUT pilot looking at managing acute deterioration

Queensland University of Technology Associate Professor Margaret MacAndrew has received $960,324 from the same MRFF program to undertake the Identify, Report and Respond to Acute Deterioration intervention bundle for aged care homes: co-design and feasibility pilot trial.

Professor MacAndrew said that early and appropriate management of acute deterioration could halve hospital admissions for aged care residents.

Professor MacAndrew said this implementation research project would build on previous research that produced the IRRAD program in collaboration with families of aged care residents and providers, including Rockpool Aged Care, Anglicare Southern Queensland and Metro North Community and Oral Health.

“The research previously conducted by members of this research team identified barriers and enablers of detecting and responding to acute deterioration in residential aged care,” she told AAA.

“This project enables us to be able to continue this important work to co-create an intervention that will support the residential aged care community, including trained and untrained nurses, family members and even cleaners and kitchen staff, to Identify the early signs of acute deterioration, Report the change to the appropriate person, and for a Response to be initiated that could prevent further deterioration, transfer to an emergency department, or premature death.”

The pilot will go for six months and assess the feasibility and acceptability of this solution for vulnerable older Australians.

“By detecting the signs of acute deterioration early and initiation of a comprehensive assessment to guide management of the underlying cause could prevent further deterioration of the person and avoid transfer to hospital,” she said.

“Potentially preventable hospitalisation of older people comes with some risks such as falls, medication errors, pressure injuries, delirium and premature death.

“We have identified some of the barriers to detecting acute deterioration in residential aged care including that the staff who spend the most time with people in residential aged care are untrained care staff with limited medical literacy, knowledge and skills to report and manage acute deterioration.

“High staff turnover can also lead to subtle changes in residents’ condition being missed, and aged care organisational policies that limit nurses’ scope of practice are also barriers to early identification.”

The research team will also involve chief investigators Associate Professor Christina Parker, Distinguished Professor Patsy Yates, Dr Linda Schnitker, Professor Jed Duff, Dr Hannah Carter, Dr Amy Spooner, Emeritus Professor Elizabeth Beattie, Dr Wei Hong Liu, Adjunct Associate Professor Nicole Gavin all from from QUT. Dr Leanne Jack from Central Queensland University and Dr Caroline Grogan from Wesley Research Institute will also be involved.

Associate investigators include Dr Shirley Chambers and Dr Jane O’Brien from QUT; Dr Claire O’Connor from The University of New South Wales; Victoria Cain from Anglicare; Professor Andrew Teodorczuk from The University of Queensland, Desma-Ann van Rosendal from Rockpool Residential Aged Care and Belinda Sawtell from Queensland Health.

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