Laura Dodds

Research Student -  PhD  

Thesis Title

Implementation of a dementia awareness and risk reduction intervention in rural and regional older adults.

Research Project

This project will use a mixed methods approach d to evaluate the impact of a behaviour change program, Brain Bootcamp Frontiers, on dementia risk factor awareness and cognitive function in older adults living in rural, regional and remote populations.

In rural and remote communities, dementia is the 4th leading cause of death, yet majority of evidence for awareness and risk reduction strategies can only be generalized to metropolitan areas and younger people. Existing risk reduction research within the rural and remote context focuses on health professionals, however they are chronically understaffed and under-resourced, resulting in burnout and high staff turnover. Thus, many health professionals employ a treatment/reactive framework focusing on acute health crises rather than encouraging preventative health behaviors.

This project will directly assess and map dementia awareness, risk and cognitive function amongst older Australians in rural locations. It will help to generate new knowledge on the effectiveness of an innovative, low-cost behaviour change program (Brain Bootcamp Frontiers) for older rural adults on dementia knowledge, awareness and cognitive function. Findings will also critically identify approaches to improve the efficacy of future dementia risk reduction interventions targeting individuals in rural and remote areas on cognition. Identification of high-risk dementia profiles will better inform target areas for intervention, dementia-related services and preventative care.

Qualifications

• Master of Public Health (Cross Disciplinary Studies Specialisation) (MPH)
• Bachelor of Arts-Psychology with the degree of Bachelor of Health (BA-PsychBHlth)

Publications

Please visit my Google Scholar page.

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