Corey is just finishing high school and wrote some heartwarming poems about their jouney, which you can find online. While we know there will be others in his situation, it must be especially tough living with this diagnosis at such a young age.

The Barrett whānau has shared their journey with Alzheimers NZ previously and today we hear from Corey’s perspective.

Richard has more than 40 years’ experience researching the human brain and a long list of accolades. From medial advancements to his current work alongside iwi, there is one constant throughout his journey – the importance of people.

NASC helps people living with dementia mate wareware and other health conditions access support. This could be somebody to help with personal or health needs such as help with showering a whānau member or help around the house like the washing.

Joined by members of the Alzheimers NZ Lived Experience Advisory Group, this podcast gives people a general understanding of NASC to empower them to use the services available. 

Resources

• Find your local NASC
• Older Persons NASC Services
• Find your local Alzheimers or dementia service
• Support for older people in Otago and Southland

In this podcast, Catherine and Tracey explore what practical changes can be implemented and how to get the attention of policy makers as we continue to advocate for the ageing population in Aotearoa New Zealand. Check out the first part of this podcast online.

This podcast was recorded on 13 November 2025.

In this podcast, we’ll articulate what the challenge is for the ageing population in Aotearoa New Zealand.

This podcast was recorded on 13 November 2025.

This is timely  before the launch of the World Alzheimer Report 2025 on dementia rehabilitation. While the concept of rehabilitation can have certain connotations, for people with dementia it is about maintaining and often improving both physical and cognitive function to help improve overall quality of life.

Our friend and partner Co-Director CCREATE-AGE and Joyce Cook Chair Professor Ngaire Kerse, and our very own Dementia Learning Centre’s Director Caroline Bartle share more with our Principal Advisor Services and Standard Lyneta Russell.

Together, we’ll promote excellence in ageing and dementia research and service delivery in an inclusive and practical way – specialising in supporting organisations to meet emerging design principles. 

From diagnosis to the hard realities facing organisations in terms of funding, here’s what Alister and Rosie shared with MPs at Parliament recently.

Useful links:

• My Life’s Journey app
• Joint Service Delivery Model with Dementia NZ
• Local Alzheimers and Dementia organisations

This audio was recorded 9 April 2025.

Campbell’s research has a focus on neurodegenerative diseases with two big pillars – the first being cognitive neuroscience mechanisms (the problems people experience in the setting of things like like Alzheimers).

The second pillar is around clinical trials and trying new treatments for Alzheimers. Campbell also discusses the reality of some of the latest medications available around the world.

Find out more about Campbell’s research in the podcast below.

From virtual reality experiences to gamification and artificial intelligence, they investigate how the Dementia Learning Centre at Alzheimers New Zealand is embracing innovation to enhance learning while maintaining human connection at the heart of care.  

Caroline introduces several exciting new initiatives set to launch in 2025 that will revolutionise dementia care training across Aotearoa New Zealand. 

Subscribe now for more information on upcoming events at the Dementia Learning Centre. 

From innovative training programmes to cutting-edge technology, she outlines how the Centre will support and transform dementia mate wareware care while prioritising people at the core of their work.  

This third episode in the series explores how the Dementia Learning Centre will enhance Alzheimers New Zealand’s essential role in supporting people living with dementia and their whānau. 

Subscribe now for more information on upcoming events at the Dementia Learning Centre. 

She and Ellen Bragger examine how combining emotional engagement with practical experience fosters lasting change in dementia care.  

Together, they explore the elements that make training truly effective from storytelling to virtual reality and why the future of learning must extend beyond the classroom into everyday practice. Part two of this series reveals how the Dementia Learning Centre at Alzheimers New Zealand is reimagining education for real-world impact. 

Subscribe now for more information on upcoming events at the Dementia Learning Centre. 

They address the complexities of delivering effective training across diverse healthcare settings, the impact of high staff turnover, and the necessity for standardised approaches.  

This thought-provoking conversation sets the foundation for future episodes by highlighting the importance of evolving traditional training methods to better serve individuals living with dementia mate wareware, their whānau, and healthcare professionals.  

Subscribe now for more information on upcoming events at the Dementia Learning Centre. 

Professor Lynette Tippett and Dr Etu Ma’u – of the University of Auckland – join Chief Executive Catherine Hall to kōrero (talk) about what’s new.

Lynette is Director of the Dementia Prevention Research Clinics where they are researchingfactors and biomarkers that influence progression of memory difficulties and that promote brain health in New Zealanders, and Etu is also a consultant old age psychiatrist with Health NZ Waikato. 

The first part of this podcast covers some of the latest news about diagnosis, biomarkers and testing. The second part explores risk reduction.

Resources

• The growing burden of dementia in Aotearoa: Scope for prevention
• Dementia Prevention Research Clinics
• Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan

This podcast was recorded on 29 November 2024.

Alzheimers NZ Principal Advisor Services and Standards Lyneta Russell is joined by Managers Heather Lackner (Nelson/Tasman) and Helen Frank (Taranaki) for an insight into what’s happening at the coalface of local services. They discuss the ins and outs of the services they provide and the impact they make in their local communities.

If you or anybody you know needs more support, reach out to your local Alzheimers or Dementia service around the country.

ADI will release the 2024 World Alzheimer Report on stigma on the eve of World Alzheimers Day, following a worldwide survey into global attitudes to dementia mate wareware. This report is an update of the 2019 version to see how attitudes have changed five years on.

Chris gives us a sneak peek into the headlines and delves into why it’s so important to tackle the stigma around dementia mate wareware.

This podcast was recorded on 3 September 2024.

Rose has recently released her new book which explores some of the common myths around dementia mate wareware. She teaches in ageing studies and dementia mate wareware care at Flinders University and is a policy advisor for Dementia Australia. 

You can find out more about how to reduce your risk of dementia mate wareware or the Awareness and understanding of dementia in New Zealand (2017) survey on the Alzheimers NZ website.

The Dementia Learning Centre is our hub of excellence for dementia mate wareware education. The kaupapa of the centre is based around people, and the right we all have to feel supported, valued and loved.

Follow Kathy’s journey getting the centre established and her hopes for the dementia mate wareware education sector in years to come. Thank you for your amazing work, Kathy!

Find out more about the Dementia Learning Centre on the Alzheimers NZ website, or see:

• Caring for the carers online module
• Living with dementia online module
• Educational Dementia Immersive Experience (EDIE)
• Cognitive Stimulation Therapy

Audika is the only hearing provider in Aotearoa New Zealand which is currently Dementia Friendly Accredited – well done! We also explore what this means for people in real life.

You can find out more about the Dementia Friendly Recognition Programme on the Alzheimers NZ website.

The group was established in 2022 to provide strategic advice to guide government on how Aotearoa New Zealand should move forward to achieve the vision of the Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan.

Are you keen to be involved in this important kaupapa? Join the Dementia Mate Wareware Network today.

This podcast was recorded on 6 March 2024.

The University of Auckland’s Associate Professor Gary Cheung shares more about his latest project in collaboration with Dementia Auckland and others – Caring for People with Dementia Together – to improve services for Chinese New Zealanders.

You can find out more in The Understanding and Experiences of Living with Dementia in Chinese New Zealanders research paper.

University of Auckland’s Dr Etu Ma’u and Professor Lynette Tippett share more about risk reduction, following the release of the World Alzheimer Report 2023 in September. 

Principal Advisor Services and Standards Lyneta Russell is joined by Dr Anna Lawrence and Liz Childs, of Continence NZ, in our latest podcast. They discuss different strategies which can be put in place to support people living with incontinence and where to go for help.

We’re joined by Summerset’s Programme Lead – Therapeutic Recreation Orquidea Tamoyo Mortera in this episode, to chat about how engaging people in recreation and doing activities, can create a sense of belonging in a place like residential care that often does not always feel like home. 

In this episode, we’re joined by Annabel Grant, a Speech Language Therapist working at Massey University to chat about a few simple strategies to help a person living with dementia mate wareware when they are lost for words. 

In this episode, we’re joined by Summerset's Dementia Specialist Shelley Kennedy to chat about a common phrase said by people living with dementia mate wareware in residential care homes: ‘I want to go home’. 

In this episode, we’re joined by Ryman Healthcare Dementia Project Specialist Caroline Bartle and chatting about Personhood and why this is important for people and whānau living with dementia mate wareware.

Join Alzheimers NZ Chief Executive Catherine Hall and Media Advisor Daniel Paul to explore why working closely with Government is crucial for people and whānau living with dementia mate wareware in the lead up to the 2023 General Election.

We delve into how we work with Government, why it’s important and why you should care.

This podcast was recorded on 2 June 2023.

The experts explore the latest research, the effect of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST) and what people can do to help keep their brains healthy.

Government has already indicated their support with the implementation of the Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan, and their support for healthy ageing in Te Pae Tata Interim New Zealand Health Plan. However, there is still more work to be done in the lead up to the 2023 election.

We’re joined by Alzheimers South Canterbury services manager Rosie Chambers and Alzheimers Tauranga/Western Bay of Plenty general manager Glenn Bradley to hear their insights about what’s really happening on the ground.  

Dr Ma’u highlights the need for more support – particularly for ethnic communities – throughout a person’s life.

Dr Etu Ma’u is a senior lecturer at Auckland University, and a specialist old age psychiatrist at Waikato Hospital. 

Here to talk to us is Dr Ngaire Kerse (NZOM), the inaugural Joyce Cook Chair in Aging Well at the University of Auckland, and a GP at the City Mission. She has looked after many people with dementia in primary and residential care, and actively researches ways to prevent dementia and make the lives of those with dementia and their carers better.

Here to talk us through these issues is Professor Srikanth, Director of the National Centre for Healthy Ageing (NCHA), and Director of Research at Peninsula Health. He is also Professor of Medicine in the Central Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University, Melbourne Australia. He works clinically as a specialist Geriatrician with particular expertise in dementia and stroke. 

There can be no doubt that contracting Covid is a difficult experience for everyone. But what happens when you are also living with or supporting someone with dementia?

In this episode, we hear from Sarah France, a Taranaki-based doctor specialising in the mental health of older adults. Sarah is a Board Member of Alzheimers NZ, and has extensive knowledge of the aged care system both in the UK and Australia. 

Around 70,000 New Zealanders live with dementia right now, which is set to more than double by 2050. This increase is expected to be much faster for Māori, Pasifika and Asian communities.

In September, Alzheimers NZ launched the Dementia Economic Impact Report 2020, produced by a team of researchers from the University of Auckland. This latest study has just confirmed what a monumental challenge dementia will be for Aotearoa New Zealand.

Existing dementia support services are woefully inadequate now, and are nowhere near what’s required to cope with this growing challenge.

In this episode, we discuss the impact of dementia with two of the researchers behind the report, Etu Ma’u and Makarena Dudley, who are both Senior Lecturers at Auckland University.

Etu Ma’u comes from Tonga. As well as lecturing, he is a specialist old age psychiatrist at Waikato Hospital. He also has a strong interest in dementia risk reduction and in equity, particularly for Pacific populations.

Makarena Dudley (Te Rarawa, Te Aupōuri, Ngāti Kahu) has been researching mate wareware dementia in Māori since 2015, focusing on the development of a theory of dementia from a Māori worldview, a dementia screening tool specifically for Māori, and an app for awareness and prevention.

But as we all know, there’s much more to communication than just words. 

As a Champion for Dementia and writer, Kate De Goldi knows first hand the importance of communication, and the ability to be able to express our thoughts and feelings to the people we care about.

In this episode, we talk dementia and communication with Alison Wray, Research Professor of Language and Communication at Cardiff University. 

Alison’s research into dementia communication focuses on understanding the causes of disrupted communication - not just as a result of the underlying damage to the brain, but also what happens to the norms of social interaction and how this is affected by the cognitive disruptions caused by dementia.

Check out Alison's new book, Why Dementia Makes Communication Difficult.

As New Zealand’s Disability Rights Commissioner, Paula’s role to protect and promote the rights of disabled New Zealanders. 

Paula is Chef de Mission for the NZ Paralympic team heading to Toyko. She is also a Paralympian cycling gold medalist, a former lawyer, was a general manager at Stats NZ and at the Ministry of Justice. She is a life trustee with the Halberg Foundation, and has held a range of governance roles on various Boards, and she is a mum. 

The World Alzheimer Report 2020, released by Alzheimers Disease International, calls on governments around the world to take action, and include design solutions in their responses to dementia. 

Dementia is a disability, one that is going to become more of an issue for our communities and our government as our society ages. 

So how can we start putting dementia design principles into action? Jack O’Neill is a Lecturer of Architecture at Unitec, researching how an architecture of care that prioritises people with dementia can support them not to “just” live but to live as fulfilling a life as possible.                                                                          

The book, Assessment of Mental Capacity: A guide for Doctors and lawyers, can be found here: https://vup.victoria.ac.nz/assessment-of-mental-capacity-a-new-zealand-guide-for-doctors-and-lawyers/

Astonishingly, and despite these sad facts, there is no concrete government action plan on the horizon to deal with this urgent and growing health care challenge, a challenge that has been further exposed by Covid-19.

Covid-19 has not caused this problem. It has merely brought into sharp focus just how neglected and vulnerable people with dementia and their families really are.

Across the country, local Alzheimers organisations provide help to their communities in the form of services like support and activity groups, day programmes and Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST). 

These services are a lifeline for many. But the outbreak of Covid-19 means that until its safe, these can no longer take place in a face to face capacity. In fact, many older people have already been staying home for longer than the formal lockdown period, and will likely need to do so for some time yet.  

If the Covid-19 crisis has any upside, it’s the fact that, for the first time in decades, the plight of older people is receiving long-overdue attention and concern. And it is encouraging to hear that the community is stepping up and finding innovative ways to help. But we’ve still got a long way to go on our journey. As lockdown restrictions ease and life starts to get back to normal for lots of us, wouldn't it be great if doing more and better for older and more vulnerable people in our communities could be more than a blip on the nation’s radar?