The Queensland Dementia, Ageing and Frailty Clinical Network (QDAF) provides clinical leadership and advocacy to improve the care provided for older Queenslanders, with a focus on those living with frailty and dementia. The network works with hospital and health services, primary care, community stakeholders and the Department of Health to enhance communication, planning, strategic decision-making and workforce capability, and to improve service effectiveness, consistency and efficiency.
The role of the network
The network brings together clinicians, consumers and stakeholders from across the primary, community and acute-care sectors to:
- be responsive to current events and advocate for older people and people with dementia
- provide governance and support to the program that has been developed under the FRAIL collaborative
- promote best practice and eliminate unnecessary changes in care
- develop and implement strategies within Queensland Health to support improved quality of care
- provide a Queensland Health point of contact for interstate committees and initiatives.
Current priorities
- Developing a networked model of care to improve access to specialist cognitive impairment and dementia services for people living in regional, rural and remote parts of Queensland
- Exploring opportunities to improve First Nations elder care
- Examining perioperative care of older surgical patients for improvement
- Investigating opportunities relating to the possible release of monoclonal antibody medications in Australia for the treatment of Alzheimer’s type dementia
- Advocating for dementia friendly environmental design
- Assisting with Queensland’s response to the National Dementia Action Plan, which should be released in 2024
Committee and general membership
The network is led by an executive group and supported by a steering committee and a consumer advisory group. The steering committee meets 6 times per year and is comprised of a multidisciplinary team of clinicians including doctors, nurses and allied-health professionals from across Queensland Health and the wider healthcare sector. The consumer advisory group is also represented on the steering committee.
General QDAF membership is available to anyone who wishes to join. Membership gives opportunities to attend network events, contribute to network activities and receive the QDAF clinical network email communique.
Executive committee
- Chair—Dr Aisling Fleury, Director of Perioperative Medicine, Senior Staff Specialist Geriatrician, Logan Hospital, Metro South Hospital and Health Service
- Deputy Chair—Dr Stella Lin, Geriatrician and General Physician, Surgical, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service, Metro North Hospital and Health Service
- Deputy Chair—Dr Fiona Baker, Staff Specialist Emergency, Harvey Bay and Maryborough Hospitals, Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service
- Deputy Chair—Associate Professor Ajay Macharouthu, Consultation Liaison Psychiatrist for Older Persons, ECT Director, Director of Training for Psychiatry, Cairns Hospital, Cairns Hinterland and Health Service
Resources
Clinician resources
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Projects
- QDAF’s improvement projects are located on the Clinical Excellence Queensland improvement exchange. Click Area in the menu and select ‘Dementia, Ageing, and Frailty Clinical Network’ to find QDAF’s improvement projects.
Dementia
- The general practitioner dementia enablement guide (PDF, 224kB) provides an algorithm to guide the care general practitioners (GPs) give to a person once they have received a dementia diagnosis, including possible referrals and a description of the roles the various clinicians play.
Ageing and frailty
- Residential aged-care clinical pathways were developed to support decision-making by registered nurses and GPs caring for residents of aged care facilities and to guide referral to Queensland Health residential aged care facility acute care support services.
- The geriatric emergency department intervention (GEDI) toolkit is a service providing specialist and targeted care for persons aged 75 years and over who present to the emergency department.
- The Frail Older Persons Project was established to identify and prioritise opportunities to improve the care provided to frail older people attending Queensland hospitals.
- Collaborative Older Persons Elective Surgery Risk Assessment for Treatment Efficacy (COOPERATE) is a project that proposed a framework for clinical redesign of preoperative assessment and management of older Queenslanders having elective surgery.
- Consumer resources
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- The consumer dementia enablement guide (PDF, 6MB) details the types of clinicians and organisations that a person may wish to contact about managing common issues they may experience after getting a dementia diagnosis. An addendum (PDF, 3.6MB) outlines the role of the various clinicians consumers may encounter during their journey.
Events
The network holds regular forums and other events that provide an opportunity for all members to share ideas about how healthcare can be improved for older Queenslanders. Details of events are publicised in the Queensland Dementia, Ageing, and Frailty Clinical Network communique.
Contact us
Email: QldDementiaAgeingFrailtyNetwork@health.qld.gov.au
Postal Address: PO Box 2368, Fortitude Valley BC 4006
