Community voice essential for dementia to become a health priority this election year

As we enter our 40^th year as Alzheimers NZ I’ve been reflecting on the changes over that time.

Much has happened as you would expect, but overall, progress is disappointing and far too many families continue to struggle to get the help they need.

At best, only 50 percent of people get a diagnosis and almost 40,000 people are missing out on the community dementia support they desperately need.

We need a fairly funded Alzheimers and Dementia organisations and an integrated health system for older people so nobody misses out!

The roadmap for this is clear and set out in Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan . This Plan itself builds on the New Zealand and international evidence, is supported by the sector and is already included in the NZ Health Plan.

Implementing this Plan will support government’s focus on delivering services so people stay at home for as long as possible and reduce pressure on the wider health system – it seems a no brainer.

And yet, no decisions have yet been made to implement the Plan. We await the advice from the Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) on aged care which has now started its work and hope that group addresses the urgent need for better support for people living with dementia.

For now though, our focus is on the upcoming 2026 General Election and the opportunity this provides to highlight this big and growing problem for all Parties, so people living with dementia are front of mind for the incoming government.

But we can’t do this alone – we need your help. Every voice matters when it comes to decision makers, and the more they hear from people the more likely they are to make the change we need.

Whether it’s using our talking points to have a conversation with your local MP, writing a letter to your local editor or simply having a conversation about dementia mate wareware. Our refreshed position papers and talking points can support your conversations.

Or we’d love for you to join us at this year’s conference – locked in for 29 and 30 September in Auckland and online – or our political panel at the start of the month.

Keep an eye out for more details and registration on our events page.

Your support is timely as Alzheimers NZ celebrates 40 years – a huge milestone for any organisation and one I’m proud to have spent more than a decade leading.

It was originally set up to provide a national voice in improving the support services available to dementia patients and their carers.

Local Alzheimers organisations are vital parts of their local communities and have played a crucial role in this journey – and some of them for longer than we have!

Alzheimers Southland was incorporated in 1985, and also celebrating 40 years this year is Alzheimers Tauranga/WBOP and Alzheimers Otago which were incorporated in 1986.

Alzheimers Nelson/Tasman and Alzheimers Marlborough were incorporated in 1987.

It’s a privilege to work alongside the many committed people at local services up and down the country, and congratulations to everyone who has been part of this story.

But there is still more to be done.

A strong and cohesive voice is still vital to get people the community support they deserve. And I hope you’ll be part of it.