Later stages of dementia and palliative care

palliAGED is a palliative care evidence and practice information resource for the Australian aged care sector. Providing support for health and care practitioners as well as resource developers, the website also provides trustworthy information for older Australians, their families and friends.

Dementia Australia - Planning ahead is thinking about your future, and putting things in place so that your choices will be known and acted on if you cannot express these choices yourself later in life. This may happen if you have a sudden accident, become very ill or develop a condition such as dementia that affects your memory and your planning ability. Planning ahead can include issues related to your finances, lifestyle or health care.

Provides information and guidance to support palliative care and advance care planning for people living with dementia and their families.

The What Matters Most for Older Australians Discussion Starter and card pack has been developed for older people using aged care services and those living with dementia. They are designed to be used with health or aged care staff. They can help older people work out what would be right for them, if they were really sick or at the end of their life rather than waiting for a crisis to occur. The resources can be used to help health and aged care workers and the older person to have these important discussions with the person’s family and friends. For the older person, it covers three areas: about you; about your health; and what you might want at the end of your life. It also contains a list of useful contacts.
The What Matters Most Discussion Starter and cards are available in the following languages: Arabic , Croatian, Greek, Hindi, Italian, Maltese, Polish, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese.

A framework for developing local palliative care service delivery guidelines for people with dementia. / WA Department of Health 2021

Objectives of the review were to assess the quality of research evidence for the different activity components for the psycho-social Namaste Care intervention for care home residents with advanced dementia.
Bray, J., Brooker, D. J., & Garabedian, C. (2021). What is the evidence for the activities of Namaste Care? A rapid assessment review. Dementia, 20(1), 247–272.

Dementia not only affects individuals but also affects and changes the lives of close family members. An increasing number of dementia-related deaths occur in long-term care facilities; therefore, it is critical to understand how healthcare professionals support and care for residents with dementia and their families at the end of life.
Midtbust, M. H., Alnes, R. E., Gjengedal, E., & Lykkeslet, E. (2021). Separation characterized by responsibility and guilt: Family caregivers’ experiences with palliative care for a close family member with severe dementia in long-term care facilities. Dementia, 20(2), 518–533.