Dementia Care

34 / 40

34 Australian Journal of Dementia Care December 2016/January 2017 Vol 5 No 6
Dementia Support Australia (DSA) is
now providing the new national
Dementia Behaviour Management
Advisory Service (DBMAS), alongside the
Australia-wide Severe Behaviour
Response Teams (SBRT).
DSA is a HammondCare-led industry
partnership which began DBMAS
provision on 1 October, 2016. DSAbrings
together twoAustralian-Government
funded dementia programs, with
HammondCare having delivered the
national SBRT program since 2015.
These services will be further
strengthened by working closely with
Dementia TrainingAustralia (DTA), the
new national training program consortium
led by the University of Wollongong,
which also began on 1 October.
Key national DSA partners
The successful initial roll-out of the
national DBMAS builds on the established
SBRT network and has been further aided
by the strength and support of the DSA
partnership which has brought together
dementia expertise from across the aged
care industry.
DSApartners include:
• Australian Regional and Remote
Community Services (ARRCS) –
providing the services in the Northern
Territory and the Top End of Australia.
•Wintringham – providing expertise in
supporting people with alcohol-related
dementia and transitional care for
people with complex needs.
• Catholic Homes Inc – supporting the
services inWA.
• Blue Care – supporting the services in
Queensland/northern NSW.
• Aged Care Channel (ACC) – DSA’s
knowledge and capacity building
partner.
Not only do DSApartners help provide
local and national service delivery, but
they also offer targeted expertise that will
DSA: a quick reference guide
DSA is an industry partnership led by HammondCare, appointed by the Australian
Government to operate the Dementia Behaviour Management Advisory Service (DBMAS)
nationally in place of the previous State and Territory-based providers. DSA began
providing DBMAS on 1 October, 2016 with the contract extending to 30 June, 2019.
How do we make a request to DBMAS now that it is being provided by DSA?
DSA has worked hard to ensure that contacting DBMAS is ‘business as usual’ for
everyone. There has been no change to the existing national contact line. Referrals can
be made 24 hours a day, seven days a week on: phone 1800 699 799, email
fax 1800 921 223. For more information about DSA, DBMAS
and SBRT, visit
What does DSA mean for Severe Behaviour Response Teams (SBRT)?
DSA will be the gateway for both DBMAS and SBRT as one national service. Just as
before, when aged care providers contact DBMAS requesting assistance in caring for
a person experiencing severe and extreme behaviours and psychological symptoms of
dementia (BPSD) trained consultants will identify cases needing SBRT support.
What is the difference between DBMAS and SBRT?
DBMAS provides nationally consistent and locally present support and advice to service
providers in residential aged care, acute care and community aged care, as well as individuals
caring for a person with dementia and where BPSD are impacting on the person’s care.
SBRT is more specifically designed as a mobile clinical team with a rapid response to
support residential aged care providers where the care of a person with dementia is
impacted by more severe or extreme behaviours.
Both services now sit within DSA’s national structure and it is intended that this will
emphasise the truly supportive nature of the services.
What is the benefit of the DSA partnership?
The partnership provides nationally consistent, locally present and individually tailored
dementia support services. The partners each help provide geographic coverage and
ongoing local relationships alongside a network of new DSA offices being opened to
ensure every State and Territory – including regional and remote areas – receives effective
coverage. Each partner brings expertise of their own but their consultants, who are part
of DSA, will be accredited by DSA on an annual basis.
However, consortium partners also bring specific expertise that will benefit the provision
of service across Australia. For example:
• The Aged Care Channel will use its communication and training platforms to distribute
knowledge and build capacity.
• Australian Regional and Remote Community Services, as well as servicing the NT and
Top End, will bring specific dementia care knowledge and experience in the support
of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
• Wintringham provides expertise in supporting people with alcohol-related dementia
and transitional care for complex cases.
• Blue Care (Queensland, northern NSW) and Catholic Homes Inc (WA) both are highly
regarded for the provision of dementia care support.
• HammondCare has successfully provided DBMAS in NSW, SBRT nationally and is
internationally respected as a provider of dementia care through its services in NSW
and Victoria.
Dementia Support Australia the
new gateway to DBMAS, SBRT
Australia’s new DBMAS provider, Dementia Support Australia (DSA), is offering national
consistency, a local presence and a tailored individual service. Associate Professor
ColmCunningham, Director of HammondCare’s Dementia Centre and DSA, explains