Topic guides: Men in the caring role: Content

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Dementia Australia resources

Men in the caring role presented by Vincent Poisson
In this video we are joined by Vincent Poisson, lead developer of the Dementia Australia Blokes in the Caring Role program, which has been specifically designed to educate and support male carers. Vincent will explore the experience of male carers of people with dementia and share his research in developing the evidence based, male-friendly support program.
Supporting male carers: a toolkit
Publication Date: 2024

This toolkit has been designed to assist health professionals in their approach and practice with male carers of people with dementia. The toolkit provides practical strategies such as how to facilitate task-focused rapport building with male carers; how to provide solution-focused advice to male carers; and how to link male carers to formal and informal support.
The Dementia Guide by Dementia Australia
Publication Date: 2024; edited 2025

For people living with dementia, their families and carers. The Dementia Guide is an important resource for any person impacted by any form of dementia, of any age. This resource contains information about the impact dementia may have on a person, the treatment, support and services they may need. It is available to read online, download as a pdf, listen to an audio version or request a print copy.
Talking to someone with dementia
A guide to ways in which people with dementia say good communication would improve their lives. This resource has been developed by the Dementia Australia Advisory Committee (DAAC). The national representative group made up of people living with dementia.

Support for families and carers
Family members and friends often find themselves in the role of a carer when a loved one is living with dementia. While caring for your loved one can be rewarding, it can also have its tougher days. As you care for someone with dementia, you may not be taking as much care of your own emotional, mental or physical wellbeing. Whether you’re the husband, wife, partner, daughter, son, brother, sister or friend of the person, your relationship will change. Dementia Australia offers support for families and carers so you don’t feel alone.

Family and Friends Matter: How to stay connected with a person living with dementia by Dementia Australia
Publication Date: 2025
Family and friends matter. They help us navigate life’s ups and downs. They accept us as we are. If your family member or friend has been diagnosed with dementia, it’s natural to feel unsure about what this means for the future. Here you’ll find answers to questions like: How will dementia impact our relationship? What can we do to keep a special bond? How can we stay connected in meaningful ways? What interests can we continue to enjoy together?

Books

The Dementia Caregiver by Marc E. Agronin
Publication Date: 2015
With the right information, resources and tips on caregiving and working with professionals, you can become your own expert at both caring for your charge and taking care of yourself.
In these pages, Marc Agronin guides readers through a better understanding of the changes their loved one may be going through, and helps them tap into the various resources available to them as they embark on an uncertain caregiving journey. Insisting that a caregiver also maintain his or her own health and well being, Agronin guides caregivers in their efforts to provide care, but to also look to themselves as recipients of care from themselves and others. Shedding light on the debilitating disorders themselves as well as their everyday realities, this book is a much-needed resource for anyone caring for another person suffering from Alzheimer's disease and other neurocognitive disorders.
Mayo Clinic on Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias by Jonathan Graff-Radford; Angela M. Lunde
Publication Date: 2020
This book from the world-renowned Mayo Clinic offers an update on what experts know about Alzheimer's and related dementias, including the latest research into treatment and prevention, ways to live well with dementia, and recommendations for caregivers. While Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia, many related types also affect adults worldwide, causing loss of memory, reason, judgment, and other cognitive functions.
Can I Tell You about Dementia? by Jude Welton; Jane Telford (Illustrator)
Publication Date: 2013
Meet Jack - an older man with dementia. Jack invites readers to learn about dementia from his perspective, helping them to understand the challenges faced by someone with dementia and the changes it causes to memory, communication and behaviour. He also gives advice on how to help someone with dementia stay as mentally and physically active as possible, keep safe and continue to feel cared for and valued. With illustrations throughout, this useful book will be an ideal introduction to dementia for anyone from child to adult. It will also guide family, friends and carers in understanding and explaining the condition and could serve as an excellent starting point for family discussions.
The 36-Hour Day by Nancy L. Mace; Peter V. Rabins
Publication Date: 2017
Through five editions, The 36-Hour Day has been an essential resource for families who love and care for people with Alzheimer disease. Whether a person has Alzheimer disease or another form of dementia, he or she will face a host of problems. The 36-Hour Day will help family members and caregivers address these challenges and simultaneously cope with their own emotions and needs.
Bathing Without a Battle by Ann Louise Barrick
Presents an individualised, problem-solving approach to bathing and personal care of individuals with dementia.Includes strategies and techniques that work in both institution and home settings. Their approach is appropriate for caregiving activities other than bathing, such as morning and evening care, and for frail elders not suffering from dementia. topics include; Pain; Skin care; Determining the appropriate level of assistance; Transfers ;The environment
Creating Moments of Joy along the Alzheimer's Journey by Jolene Brackey
When people have short-term memory loss, their lives are made up of moments. We are not able to create perfectly wonderful days for people with dementia or Alzheimer's, but we can create perfectly wonderful moments, moments that put a smile on their faces and a twinkle in their eyes.
Dear Alzheimer's by Keith Oliver
Publication Date: 2019
Keith Oliver was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2010, and has since become a leading activist for dementia care, and an international speaker. Telling his story through a diary format, this book gives an unparalleled insight into what day-to-day life with dementia is like, and how he continued to live a full life after diagnosis.

Toolkit for male caregivers: Alzheimer's
This toolkit was developed to educate, empower, and provide support for males who are caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease. Whether you are a husband, brother, friend, son, or partner of someone who has Alzheimer’s, we want to ensure you are prepared and have the knowledge, support, and resources needed to take care of your loved one to the best of your ability.

Video content

Carers of people with dementia Profiles - Men caring for partners
This series is designed to share the experience of caring for someone with dementia by seeing and hearing people tell their personal stories on film. Researchers travelled all around the UK to talk to men in their own homes. Find out what they said about issues such as early signs, strategies, respite and money.

Websites

Forward With Dementia website
This website gives people living with dementia and carers answers and practical actions to take after a dementia diagnosis.
This website was developed by people living with dementia, carers, clinicians and researchers. It will help you to better understand the diagnosis, come to terms with your feelings, and manage symptoms and changes. You can find practical information on driving, (or giving up driving), improving your physical and emotional health, how to get support and make plans for the future. Topics are tailored for people with dementia and carers, and pages and tools are downloadable and printable. There are a range of resources, links to other reputable websites, news items, and stories from other people and carers who have lived through the challenges of a dementia diagnosis but continue to live full and meaningful lives. A diagnosis is not the end, it is the first step in moving forward with dementia.
Younger onset dementia hub
Information and support for people living with younger onset dementia including NDIS planning tool.
Planning ahead - Start2Talk
Most of us would prefer not to think about becoming unwell or developing dementia, but it is important to have plans in place in case we do. Start2Talk has been developed by Dementia Australia and our partners to help all Australians start the conversations involved in planning ahead.
Carer Gateway
Carers can get a wide range of help – from counselling and peer support groups, to respite care, home help and equipment.
Men care too
Men Care Too aims to increase awareness and recognition of men in unpaid, informal caring roles. An Australian website providing news, resources and information relevant for all men with a particular focus on blokes in unpaid, informal caring roles.
Men's sheds
The Australian Men’s Shed Association is the national service provider to more than 1000 Men’s Sheds in Australia – providing practical support, specialised services and resources. This website also provides a shed locator.

Related library guides

Journal articles

A mixed method study exploring gender differences in dementia caregiving (2023)
Poisson, V.O., Poulos, R.G., Withall, A.L., Reilly, A., Emerson, L., & O’Connor, C.M.C. (2023), A mixed method study exploring gender differences in dementia caregiving. Dementia, 22(8):1862-1885.
Navigating the Impacts of Dementia: The Experience of Male Spousal Carers (2023)
Tolhurst, E., & Weicht, B. (2023). Navigating the Impacts of Dementia: The Experience of Male Spousal Carers. Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 11(18), 2492. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11182492

Are male carers of people with dementia underutilising support services? (2020)
Poisson, V.O., Withall, A., Reilly, A. and Poulos, R.G. (2020), Are male carers of people with dementia underutilising support services?. Australas J Ageing, 39: 389-390.
Caring for One’s Wife With Dementia—at Home: Older Husbands’ Experiences With Managing Challenges of Everyday Life. (2019)
Rykkje, L., & Tranvåg, O. (2019). Caring for One’s Wife With Dementia—at Home: Older Husbands’ Experiences With Managing Challenges of Everyday Life. SAGE Open. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244019834453

'Deferred or chickened out?' Decision making among male carers of people with dementia (2016)
Sampson, Michelle S & Clark, Andrew. (2016). 'Deferred or chickened out?' Decision making among male carers of people with dementia. Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice, 15, 1605-1621.
The experience of sons caring for a parent with dementia (2014)
McDonnell, E., & Ryan, A. A. (2014). The experience of sons caring for a parent with dementia. Dementia, 13(6), 788–802.
Men caring for wives or partners with dementia: Masculinity, strain and gain (2010)
Baker, Kevin L, Robertson, Noelle & Connelly, David. (2010). Men caring for wives or partners with dementia: Masculinity, strain and gain. Aging & Mental Health, 14, 319-327.

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