DEMENTIA AUSTRALIA MEDIA RELEASE
Ask Annie is a free and interactive app developed by Dementia Australia’s Centre for Dementia Learning to help aged and community care professionals problem solve and learn on-the-go, developing dementia-specific care skills. The original development of the platform and the app was funded through a multi-year grant from Gandel Foundation.
In February 2024 Dementia Australia announced that Ask Annie was now made freely accessible to aged care workers looking to develop their person-centred care for those living with dementia.
Within the expansion of the mobile app, Ask Annie app now includes a new program for Residential Aged Care – Plan Behaviour Support, with an additional 4 modules and 19 lessons. This includes branched scenarios to provide workers with real world scenarios and decision-making opportunities to learn through trial and error.
More than two-thirds (68%) of aged care residents have moderate to severe cognitive impairment. Residential aged care providers are required to have a behaviour support plan in place for each consumer who may require the use of restrictive practices as part of their care.
Ask Annie now provides workers with a 24/7 resource in their pocket for behaviour support planning, to ensure best practice, solutions-based thinking and empathetic delivery of person-centred care.
Since the app was launched in June 2021, there has been more than 20,000 downloads, with 11,200 current active users.
Catherine Horne, General Manager (Clinical) at aged care service NoosaCare, said she appreciates the user-friendly nature of Ask Annie in this video message. “You log in, and in the snap of a finger you’ve got a recommendation for how to address the situation,”
“By helping our team, we are helping the residents and their families.”
Maree McCabe AM, CEO Dementia Australia said that this further expansion of the app aims to provide a supportive resource to aged care workers in an accessible way. “Aged care workers are tasked with such an important job in providing quality care for people living with dementia. Workers need to feel supported and well equipped with relevant training,”
“Ask Annie can provide this support, as a ‘coach in your pocket’ encouraging solutions-based thinking using practical advice that workers can apply to their practice.”
Ask Annie is free to download for both iOS and Android smartphones through the relevant app stores.
Individuals can find out more about Ask Annie at https://dementialearning.org.au/technology/ask-annie/, call 1300 DEMENTIA (1300 336 368) or email cdl@dementia.org,au.
Ask Annie’s platform development was funded by a multi-year Major Grant from Gandel Foundation. Ask Annie’s courses were funded by multiple donors including Insignia Financial and Perpetual, each having contributed to different courses. This new course ‘Plan Behaviour Support’ has been funded by ARIIA (Aged Care Research & Industry Innovation Australia) and the Rosemary Norman Foundation.