Six years of start-up funding from a charitable trust that helped build the organisation’s local support services is coming to an end, and with government contracts covering only a quarter of costs, the organisation now urgently needs new funders to keep dementia services in the area, its manager, Antoinette McLean, says.
The Aged Care Association is calling on the government to temporarily help out.
A Wānaka man who cares for his wife with Alzheimer’s disease says if the organisation’s support services are cut, it will leave them both in "a gloomy place".
The Queenstown-Lakes District is estimated to have about 500 people living with dementia and Alzheimers Otago supports 216 of them.
Based on projections, about 630 people will be living with dementia in the area by 2050.
Ms McLean said six years of seed funding from the Mactodd Community Charitable Trust had allowed the Alzheimers Otago to establish and grow its local support services.
However, the trust’s contribution was only ever intended as start-up funding and her organisation now needed to identify new funding partners.
Government contract funding only covered a quarter of the organisation’s community services, meaning grants and donations were needed to keep "essential" local dementia support services going.
"This is a critical moment," she said.
"Without new funding, we may have to reduce dementia navigation support and group programmes in Queenstown and Wānaka."
She called on local businesses, philanthropists and the community to help safeguard the services.
"If you’ve ever thought about making a difference locally, this is the moment."
Retired Wanaka resident Andrew Millar, who cared for his wife Sue Wallace, echoed her plea. He said he had grave concerns about what would happen to his wife’s quality of life if the support stopped.
Things like the Aspiring Wanderers dementia day club, run by Alzheimers Otago, helped keep peoples’ brains active and kept them socialised with other people living with dementia, he said.
It included activities that focused on cognitive stimulation, outings of interest, and fun activities that generated a sense of companionship — which was also important for carers because life could get lonely at times, Mr Millar said.
"Altogether, these things are a vital lifeline for both those with dementia as well as their carers, to enhance quality of life ... and group fellowship through what is a very challenging time for all."
They were fortunate, in the Wanaka area, to have such a wide range of activities and support.
They were lucky also to be part of a caring wider community, which was not always a given, he said..
Mr Millar said if the support disappeared, his wife might have to go into care.
"The quality of life for Sue is so much better with this support. It would be a very lonely and gloomy existence if this support was not there.
"Life would be a lot more difficult."
Alzheimers Otago did some wonderful things with very little resources, but it was "extraordinarily important" in terms of maintaining those kind of lifeline activities, he said.
The Aged Care Association urged the government to provide temporary funding for Alzheimers Otago, warning it would be "foolish" to risk losing any dementia support services, even briefly, given the wider costs that would fall on hospitals, police and search and rescue.
Chief executive and former MP Tracey Martin said the amount required was small and the government should continue backing groups like Alzheimers Otago while a ministerial advisory group reviewed how to redesign the aged-care funding model.
Associate Health Minister Casey Costello told RNZ she wanted to see dementia prevention services expanded, rather than diminished, and would be "asking Health NZ what's happening with the Otago funding".
"The government has extensive work underway to ensure older New Zealanders are able to live and age well, and receive the right support and care to help them do this.
"I've been saying that we need a real system that recognises people can need different types of care at different times and that provides for better transitions between these levels of care.
"It also needs to be based on early preventative care in communities."
Costello said dementia was an example of a condition where prevention worked and where community providers, such as Alzheimers NZ, provided "incredibly valuable support".
Health NZ referred questions to the government.
- Additional reporting RNZ
