In the world of mental illness, and of dementia, people are systematically locked up i.e. physically restrained, and chemically restrained. If you have dementia, even worse, you are segregated from all others, remembering of course, the only others this is done to without consent, are convicted criminals. Check out not only the video, but the…
Hello. After many months of silence here, I’ve decided my blog has been inactive for too long, and although there is no way I could go back to writing a daily blog, it is time to publish occasionally. The one I published yesterday was a draft I found from a some time ago, reviewed to…
It’s great to see new dementia advocates inspired and empowered to start speaking up for change. What’s disturbing though, is that after more than four decades of it, ‘we’ are asking for exactly the same things as the pioneer dementia advocates including Christine Bryden and James McKillop (who were both diagnosed in the last century),…
My inner rage, sometimes quiet, sometimes more obvious and loud – against the persistent status quo, particularly in the field of dementia ‘care’ is not meant to be personal, not to any individual, or to any organisation. I am well aware and often say in presentations that almost everyone I know goes to work (paid…
My blogpost today is to invite interested health professionals to participate in a study run by Monash University. A/Prof. Michele Callysa is the lead Chief Investigator (CI) on this project. I am also a CI, along with many other colleagues. Scroll to the bottom of this blog for more information, and for who to contact…
The Global Alliance For The Rights of Older Persons (GAROP) has launched a petition urging governments to support the drafting of a United Nations (UN) convention on the rights of older people. Please consider joining me in supporting GAROP to collect as many signatures as possible. From the GAROP campaign page: “This year is the…
On behalf of Linda and myself, I’m providing an update on our research project and provide links to our project resources, as well as a recording of the launch event. I was privileged to work as an Associate Investigator on this project with Dr Linda Steele. Our latest post, Launches, Publications, and Advocacy: A Busy Time…
On 11-12 October 2023, the Australian Human Rights Institute at UNSW Sydney will host its biennial conference, Accountability in crisis: the rise of impunity as a challenge to human rights. It is an important event, as the lack of accountability of perpetrators of harm in the dementia and aged care system in Australia is appalling, as…
I’m motivated to post a blog here today because of an article I read written by Dom Kelly, who is a co-founder of the New Disabled South, an organisation devoted to fighting for people with disabilities in the South, where issues like poverty, voting rights, and criminalization disproportionately impact the disabled community. In Australia, these issues…
The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability recently released a commissioned research report into the use of ‘restrictive practices’. The Restrictive practices: A pathway to elimination research report, compiled by researchers from the University of Melbourne, the University of Sydney and the University of Technology Sydney says restrictive practices…
‘Ellen Louise Pence (April 15, 1948 – January 6, 2012) was an American scholar and a social activist. She co-founded the Duluth Domestic Abuse Intervention Project, an inter-agency collaboration model used in all 50 states in the U.S. and over 17 countries. A leader in both the battered women’s movement and the emerging field of institutional ethnography, she was the recipient of numerous awards…
Register for this important event later this month! You will be joined by leading researchers, practitioners and advocates, on reproductive rights, the prevention of torture, the federal human rights framework, and climate activism. Hear from our inspiring speakers and ask questions during the audience Q&A following each presentation. Online and in person options available. Obviously, my main interest is in…
For almost 15 years, I’ve been campaigning for ALL people with dementia to be advised the symptoms of dementia are acquired disabilities, not only a death sentence, and for all people with dementia to receive rehabilitation, immediately after diagnosis. This is to support, and even improve cognitve and functional abilities, as well as improve our…
Over the last few years, but especially the last few months, I feel like I have finally found my tribe, or perhaps, I have found a new tribe. This emerging and growing group of people I have come to know, either through social media, zoom and even a few who I’ve met in person, not…
‘How can we redress and repair violence, abuse and neglect of people living with dementia in residential aged care?’ People living with dementia have been subject to significant harm, including violence, abuse, and neglect in aged care in Australia. Yet, this harm is rarely recognised and redressed. People living with dementia in aged care, as well as…
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