September 2020 Newsletter View in browser  |  Print
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Professor James Vickers

Dementia Awareness Week: 21-27 September

Welcome to the September newsletter of the Wicking Dementia Centre. September is a special month as there are many national and international events to increase awareness and action for dementia. Dementia Australia will be running Dementia Action Week through the 21st to 27th, and World Alzheimer’s Day is the 21st of the month. 

The COVID-19 pandemic continues across the world and, unfortunately, people with dementia and their carers are particularly vulnerable to a range of negative impacts. It is, more than ever, critical that we call for improved levels of education and training, as well as career recognition for improved skills, for people working in aged care, particularly in the area of dementia. The interest in online dementia education has increased markedly, perhaps because of our relative containment - we are well on our way to over 100,000 enrolments into Wicking Centre dementia MOOCs this year. 

Staff at the Centre had the great pleasure of being part of a virtual graduation for students in our formal degree programs. It was wonderful to meet, by Zoom in this case, many of the graduates who are making great contributions to quality dementia care throughout Australia. Please see the link below to hear more from our amazing students.

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How can I get involved?
Be proactive with your health Neural Knitworks TAS

Be proactive with your health

Neural Knitworks TAS

In our Preventing Dementia MOOC you will learn about the risk factors for dementia from leading world experts. The latest research has indicated there are modifiable risk factors which may decrease your risk of dementia. With the ageing of the world’s population, dementia is becoming the public health issue of the 21st century. Examine the evidence and reduce your risk.

The next Preventing Dementia MOOC opens on 6 October.

ENROL TODAY

Students from the Wicking Dementia Centre hosted an event during National Science Week called Neural Knitworks which involved asking the public to make a brain cell using yarn and posting a photo on Facebook. Through this event, they aimed to connect the community to neuroscience by creating a virtual ‘online neural network.’

Read more and check out the fantastic variety of 'cells' created on their Facebook page.

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News from our Students

August Graduations

Congratulations to all our students!

We would like to congratulate all our students who graduated in August. As we were unable to host a graduation ceremony we went online for our celebration. We had over 100 attending our online celebration with 181 students graduating, including our first graduates from the Graduate Certificate in Dementia. 

It was a great celebration and those attending were able to chat at the end - see our word cloud taken from all the lovely comments that were made during the event.

Hear from our students and graduates

We have received some fantastic feedback from our MOOC participants and our students and graduates from our Award courses. Hear their stories and understand how education is crucial to help raise awareness and reduce stigma.

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Our Education

Diploma of Ageing Studies and Services

The Diploma of Ageing Studies and Services addresses the need for holistic knowledge of the ageing process.

This new Diploma is a fully online, eight-unit program and is suitable for those wanting to or who are working with older adults in aged care or related sectors, such as community-based roles and services as well as aged care navigation and support. It will bring together the social and health-based perspectives of ageing, which are integral when considering the complexity of individual and population ageing. Catering to ageing populations is an expanding industry, there are numerous emerging opportunities.

Applications are now open for study in 2021 for all our education programs.  

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Our Research

Aged Care Workers and Managers Wanted!

We want your help to identify which strategies best support aged and dementia care workers in their job roles. You are invited to give input on the design of a new workforce program called Work4Dementia. If you are a worker or manager in an aged care organisation within Australia and would like to contribute, please read more below.

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CRICOS Provider Code: 00586B | ABN 30 764 374 782