Young Onset Dementia Summit: papers

Down Syndrome NSW was represented at the Young Onset Dementia Summit held in Canberra in February 2009, as an organisation with a particular interest in people susceptible to the onset of dementia under 65 years of age.

The key objectives of the Summit were to:

• Improve the lives of people with younger onset dementia and their families and carers.
• Identify consumer priorities for future improvements in services and resources for people with younger onset dementia.
• Bring to the Federal and State/Territory Governments’ attention the reality that services for people with dementia are not meeting the needs of people with younger onset dementia.
• Identify ways to improve social inclusion of people with younger onset dementia, their families and carers.
• Promote awareness of younger onset dementia in the community.

People with Down syndrome and their carers will benefit from implementation of most of the recommendations outlined in the Communique presented to the Australian Parliament. The papers from the Summit are now available online here, and the Communique is available in print from Alzheimer's Australia on request.

The Summit was organised by Alzheimers Australia, and included direct input from many people living with Young Onset Dementia, with a number of different causes. Their personal stories and participation gave the Summit a deep insight into their needs.