Spring Greetings from the StepUp for Dementia Research Team
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Dear <<First Name>>
We hope this letter finds you safe and well. With the 70% double vaccination target getting closer and closer, we are hopeful to be able to resume some form of normal life soon.
We are writing to you on the back of an exciting and busy Dementia Action week in Australia and World Alzheimer's month in September. Key themes for this year were "A little support makes a big difference" (Dementia Australia) and "Know Dementia, Know Alzheimer's" (ADI, Alzheimer's Disease International), which focus on the power of knowledge and understanding about dementia and the importance of timely diagnosis and support for people living with dementia and their carers and friends.
Key updates:
We honour our commitment to StepUp for Dementia Research and, with your continued support, we will be able to contribute to accelerating dementia research. 
Best wishes,
Professor Yun-Hee Jeon
Susan and Isaac Wakil Professor of Healthy Ageing
Faculty of Medicine and Health
The University of Sydney
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Meet our Ambassador, Professor Graeme Samuel
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As we have a growing number of researchers wanting to use StepUp for Dementia Research we are sharing an interview with our ambassador Professor Graeme Samuel [1]. Professor Samuel is the Chair of Dementia Australia and has a professorial role at Monash University in both the Business School and the School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine. He spoke candidly about his commitment to supporting dementia research to improve the lives for those living with dementia and those who are caring for loved ones living with dementia:
"Dementia research is under-resourced. While all medical research is under-resourced, there is currently no proven method of prevention, delay, or cure of dementia – of whatever form, so there is much work to be done. Whether it is Alzheimer’s disease, or vascular dementia, frontal lobe, or others, all those areas of dementia need a lot more research to be undertaken. And anything we can do to assist in that, we ought to be doing.
I think StepUp for Dementia Research is an extraordinary innovation in that it’s attempting to draw together a national cohort of persons who are saying ‘we are so concerned about the prevalence of dementia - we are willing to put our names into a registry to volunteer to be available to assist researchers in undertaking their vital research’. And to say, ‘you are now part of a group who have said, we are willing to volunteer for selective research, whatever it might be, and we’ll have volunteers across the nation.’ It just gives researchers in this area that added advantage of having a large pool of volunteers to be able to be drawn upon.
If I can, in any way at all, along with the other ambassadors, influence, persuade, encourage, exhort people who are concerned about dementia, to become volunteers, then that would be a very satisfying outcome. What we want is a very large cohort. Not of a few hundred. Not even of a few thousand, but of ten thousand or twenty thousand or more people in Australia who are saying, we are prepared to assist the half a million people who are currently living with dementia.
If we can gather together a national cohort of volunteers who are prepared and are committed to assisting research to try and help prevent this disease, to delay its onset, and ultimately to find a cure, and to assist those who are caring for loved ones, in enhancing the lifestyle of those that are living with dementia, then we will have achieved something."
[1] The interview was conducted by Professor Jeon in October 2019.
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Please click this video to view Professor Samuel's full interview.
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StepUp for Dementia Research is a bridge between people with lived experience and researchers
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Denijela Hlis is an active dementia advocate and also a member of the StepUp for Dementia Research Public Involvement Panel. She has dedicated the last ten years to supporting people living with dementia from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Please click here to read her full story.
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All About StepUp for Dementia Research
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Studies currently looking for participants on StepUp
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Trial a Safe Walking Assessment Tool
 This study is being run by the Queensland University of Technology. The aim of the study is to test the recently developed Safe Walking Assessment and Planning (SWAP) tool in a community setting. They are looking for family carers of a person with dementia to evaluate the SWAP tool to assess the walking habits of the person they care for. Carers would be required to complete an online survey and an interview which can be done either online or in-person.
Character Strengths and Dementia Care Responsibilities
 The University of the Sunshine Coast is seeking volunteers living with dementia and their care partners to participate in research studying character strengths and caregiver responsibilities. Participants will be asked to undertake a survey which will take approximately 30-45 minutes. For more information click here.
Preferences on Preventative Health Questionnaire
The University of Melbourne research team is looking for healthy volunteers aged 40-79 to investigate viewpoints about the risk of developing diseases such as dementia, heart attack, stroke, and diabetes. The aim of the study is to explore whether individuals would want to know about their risk and how they would like to learn about it. If you would like to participate in this survey, please click here.
How can I get involved in studies?
There are more studies looking for participants at StepUp for Dementia Research. If your characteristics match the study's eligibility criteria, then you should automatically be matched to the study. Please login here and check 'My Studies' to find out about all the studies that you are eligible for. Please then indicate your level of interest in participating in the study. That way the researcher will contact you according to your level of interest.
If you believe that you should be matched to a study but it does not appear in 'My Studies', please review your personal or health information by logging into your account on the StepUp website.
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What's New - recent dementia research
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So, is that dividing 24 hours by three and taking the medication every eight hours?
Or can I coordinate it with my meals and take them all within 12 hours?
Will it matter if I take it with my other morning tablet?
A study led by Dr Mouna Sawan at the University of Sydney explored caregivers' experiences of medication related issues for people with dementia transitioning from hospital. To read the study finding, please click here.
This study recruited volunteers through StepUp for Dementia Research.
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