Seminars in Ageing: Avoiding Preventable hospitalisation admissions in older people living with dementia

Avoiding Preventable hospitalisation admissions in older people living with dementia: an analysis utilising Victorian hospital datasets

Presenter: Kerry Hwang, NARI

Watch webinar recording

About the presentation

Older Australians make up 14-27% of all potentially avoidable hospitalisations, and people living with dementia are at significantly greater risk. While policy reforms aim to reduce avoidable hospitalisations, there is currently little evidence available on what drives this, especially for people living with dementia. This study examined predictors of avoidable hospitalisation admissions and non-urgent emergency department visits in people living with dementia.

This presentation will present findings from a quantitative study using Victorian administrative hospital datasets, to explore the predictors of potentially avoidable admissions in older Victorians living with dementia.

About the presenter

Kerry Hwang is a Research Assistant with the Melbourne Ageing Research Collaboration (MARC) and the National Ageing Research Institute (NARI). His main research interest involves improving the lives of older people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds.

Highlights of Kerry’s research in older CALD Australians include the application of telehealth to improve access to interpreters for diagnosing cognitive issues in older CALD Australians, and the use of translation apps to improve basic communication between healthcare staff and the older CALD patient.

Kerry has also been involved in other areas of Ageing research, including: Elder Abuse, Advance Care Planning, Falls, Dementia and Mental Health.

Kerry is a PhD candidate at the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, investigating healthcare inequities facing older CALD Australians harnessing nationally representative datasets. He is supervised by A/Prof Jeromey Temple, A/Prof Bianca Brijnath, and A/Prof Dina LoGiudice.

Further information: [email protected]

Watch webinar recording