Students recognised in national dementia competition

Students recognised in national dementia competition

Six students from Australian universities have been recognised as winners in the National Dementia Storytelling Competition.

Tara Kannan, who is studying a Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine at the University of Newcastle, took the top prize in the 2nd year category for her winning article Mind Over Matter.

Matthew Boom, who is studying a Bachelor of Physiotherapy at the University of Canberra, took the top prize in the 3rd year category for his poster Maintaining Adventure With Dementia.

The competition attracted entries from 25 universities across Australia. More than 20 fields of study were represented including nursing, medical science, communication, speech pathology, psychology, primary education, physiotherapy, midwifery and design.

The competition is a national dementia awareness initiative run by Dementia Training Australia (DTA), which is funded by the Federal Government to provide nationwide education and training on the care of people living with dementia.

Second and third-year undergraduate students were asked to explore a ‘salutogenic’ approach to dementia care in a medium of their choice.

“A salutogenic approach to dementia care is about focusing on factors that support health and wellbeing, and opportunities for a person with dementia to live as full a life as possible.”

Ms Kannan’s story explores the definition of the salutogenic model, its origins and its implications for dementia in our global community.

Mr Boom’s poster explores how physiotherapy can promote salutogenesis. They each win $2000 for their entries. The other winners are:

• Denise Edwards, Bachelor of Dementia Care, University of Tasmania (2nd prize, 2nd year category)
• Kate Galtos, Bachelor of Dementia Care, University of Tasmania (3rd prize, 2nd year category)
• Gina Macleod, Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine, Monash University (2nd prize, 3rd year category)
• Danielle Dyce, Bachelor of Dementia Care, University of Tasmania (3rd prize, 3rd year category).