GPs are encouraged to ‘Reminisce’ about dementia

Reminisce is an exciting new learning module available through the Virtual Medical Centre. It aims to educate general practitioners on the presentation, diagnosis and management of dementia in the community. The program aims to overcome issues of under-diagnosis of dementia and minimise the burden of disease on our aging population.

Dementia is described as a progressive decline in cognitive function causing memory loss and co-impairments in abstract thinking, judgment, calculation, language and personality. Dementia has various aetiologies and diagnosis can be difficult due to its overlap with delirium and other psychiatric disorders. Dementia is a relatively common condition affecting approximately 1% of the Australian population. Prevalence figures increase progressively for higher age brackets and rates of dementia have continued to rise as our population ages. This creates concerns regarding the societal and economic burdens of disease in the future. By 2016, dementia is expected to be the leading cause of disease burden in Australia.

Despite its prevalence, the diagnosis of early dementia can be easily missed in general practice. This is due to the frequent subtleties of early presentations. Early signs of dementia may not be noticed by general practitioners (GPs) or may not be reported by family members or carers who attribute the symptoms to the normal aging process. However, early detection is essential to offer appropriate support to patients and carers and to allow commencement of medications at an early stage. It is no longer acceptable to attribute cognitive decline as part of ‘normal’ aging.

Janssen-Cilag has therefore sponsored a new learning module called Reminisce to raise awareness of dementia in general practice populations. ‘Reminisce – A GP Program on Dementia’ is currently freely accessible to members of the Virtual Medical Centre. This program allows GPs to recognise the characteristics of dementia, understand its prevalence and under-diagnosis, enhance their diagnostic capabilities and improve management strategies.

The program consists of three modules as follows:

• Module 1: Detection, diagnosis and early management of dementia.
• Module 2: Ongoing management, including BPSD and neuro-imaging.
• Module 3: Late-stage care and challenges in dementia management: How to deal with obstacles, difficult management issues and difficult patients.

Each module allows you to work through a series of comprehensive and informative slides at your own pace. The program includes video recordings from experts in the field, interactive case discussions, workbooks and links to clinical guidelines and additional sources. Information is targeted at health professionals so it is largely management based and will allow you to develop practical skills that can be applied to your daily practice.

Reminisce should therefore enhance community awareness of dementia and improve diagnosis and management practices for individual patients. Hopefully this will lead to a reduction in the burden of disease on individuals, carers and society.

To access the Reminisce program, please click here.

(Source: Reminisce – A GP Program on Dementia, Janssen-Cilag, 2007)