Today is the start of Dementia Action Week, and alarmingly results of successive surveys continue to show that one in three Australians find people who are living with dementia “frightening”, an increase from 23% a decade ago, according to the peak advocacy body. Dementia Australia CEO Maree McCabe said, “these are devastating findings”. “These are our parents, grandparents, friends and neighbours now and in the future, it could be anyone reading this who might be diagnosed with dementia. “This fear leads to stigma and discrimination which can have a real and distressing impact on people living with dementia, their families and carers. “People may avoid seeking critical medical and social support and become increasingly socially isolated,” McCabe added. “Dementia is a largely invisible disease and what we can’t see, we don’t understand and what we don’t understand we are often afraid of and then avoid.” With an estimated 400,000 Australians currently living with dementia, 70% of whom live in the community, McCabe said the impact was being felt by families across the country and we must act now, and we all can all take some action. “The good news is, there are so many simple things we can do every day to change this. “We have such inspiring examples of communities that have created welcoming and inclusive environments for people with dementia through our DementiaFriendly Communities program. “It shows that it can be done, it does have an impact, and it doesn’t have to take much,” McCabe explained. Dementia Australia is providing information on actions that individuals and organisations can take to become more dementiafriendly, HERE. JG