Dementia Action Week runs from Monday 21 to Sunday 27 September 2026. Dementia Australia’s national campaign is built around a direct message: it’s time to talk about dementia.1
That message has new weight. In late 2025, the Australian Bureau of Statistics confirmed that dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, was Australia’s leading cause of death in 2024. Dementia Australia estimates that 446,500 Australians are living with dementia in 2026, a figure projected to rise to around 812,500 by 2054. 2,3
It would be easy to file dementia under ‘something for later’, a condition for people well into their seventies or for families with a history of it. That leaves out two important facts. Around 29,000 Australians are living with younger-onset dementia, and most dementia is not caused by an inherited genetic mutation.3,4
The useful question is not, ‘Am I old enough for a dementia test?’ It is, ‘Has something changed, and is it affecting everyday life?’ A GP can help at any age.
Key Takeaways
- Dementia is not a normal part of ageing, and significant changes in memory, thinking, mood or behaviour deserve attention at any age.
- A brief cognitive screening tool can identify areas that need a closer look, but no single questionnaire or score can diagnose dementia.
- The Medicare health assessment for people aged 75 and over may include a review of cognition, mood, medicines, mobility, safety and support; it is broader than a dementia test.
- If you are younger than 75 and have noticed a change, you do not need to wait for a particular birthday or a special assessment to speak with your GP.
- Brain health is relevant throughout life. Managing blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, hearing, vision, smoking, physical activity and social connection may reduce future risk.
What dementia is, and what it is not
Dementia is not a single disease. It is a term for symptoms caused by conditions that progressively affect memory, thinking, behaviour, communication, movement or the ability to manage everyday life. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause; other causes include vascular dementia, Lewy body disease and frontotemporal dementia.5
Dementia is more common after 65, but it is not a normal or inevitable part of ageing. Occasional forgetfulness happens to everyone. What matters is a pattern of change from what is usual for that person, especially when it becomes more frequent or begins to interfere with daily life.5
Changes worth mentioning to your GP
Examples can include:
- repeatedly asking the same question or struggling to retain new information
- getting lost in familiar places or becoming confused about time or place
- finding familiar tasks, such as preparing a meal or managing bills, increasingly difficult
- persistent trouble finding words or following a conversation
- missing medicines or appointments more often
- changes in judgement, mood, personality or social engagement that are out of character.
None of these signs proves that someone has dementia. Depression, anxiety, sleep problems, infection, dehydration, medication effects, thyroid conditions, vitamin deficiencies, hearing or vision loss and other health issues can cause similar symptoms. Identifying those possibilities is one reason a proper medical assessment matters.6,7
Seek urgent medical care for a sudden change. Confusion or other cognitive symptoms that appear over hours or days, especially with weakness, speech difficulty, severe headache, fever, drowsiness or a recent head injury, are not the usual pattern of dementia and may indicate delirium, stroke or another acute illness.
Why “I’m not 75” and “it’s not in my family” are not reasons to skip this
Dementia Action Week is not asking every reader to picture themselves as a future patient. Most people reading this will not develop dementia in the next decade, and that is worth saying plainly. What it is asking is that people know enough to notice a change, in themselves or in someone else, and know what to do about it, and that applies whatever your age.
Younger onset dementia describes dementia diagnosed before age 65. Dementia Australia estimates that around 29,000 Australians are living with it in 2026. Diagnosis can be more complex for younger people because symptoms may initially be mistaken for stress, depression, menopause or burnout. Across all dementia types, the average time from the onset of symptoms to diagnosis is around three years; for younger onset dementia it is closer to five years.3,6
Family history is also not a requirement. Most cases of dementia are not caused by an inherited genetic mutation, although having a close relative with dementia can affect risk. If several relatives developed dementia at a younger age, discuss that pattern with your GP rather than assuming either that dementia is inevitable or that genetics are irrelevant.4
Dementia also matters as a community issue. Two in three people living with dementia are thought to live in the community, and an estimated 1.7 million Australians are involved in caring for someone living with dementia.3
What a cognitive screening tool can—and cannot—tell you
If there is a concern about memory or thinking, a GP may use a brief cognitive screening tool. It may involve remembering words, drawing a clock, following instructions or answering questions about time and place. The result provides a structured snapshot of several thinking skills.
It is not a pass or fail, and it is not a diagnosis. Education, language, culture, hearing, vision, anxiety, tiredness and illness can affect performance. A screening result must be interpreted alongside the person’s history, day-to-day function and the changes noticed by them or by someone who knows them well.7
There is no single dementia test
Dementia is diagnosed by bringing several pieces of information together. Depending on the circumstances, assessment may include a medical history, physical or neurological examination, cognitive testing, a review of medicines, blood or urine tests, and sometimes brain imaging or referral to a specialist or memory clinic.7
Blood tests cannot diagnose dementia, but they can help identify other causes of cognitive symptoms. Brain imaging may look for strokes, tumours or patterns of brain change, but a scan does not provide the whole answer by itself.7
Where the 75+ Health Assessment fits
Medicare’s health assessment items can be used for an eligible person aged 75 or older once every 12 months. The assessment is intended to evaluate physical, psychological and social function and support preventive care or other appropriate interventions.8
It covers much more than cognition. Depending on the person’s circumstances, it can include medical history, medicines, nutrition, mobility and falls risk, continence, hearing, vision, mood, social support, home safety and whether additional services may help. Memory or thinking concerns can also be raised and assessed where appropriate.8
A 75+ Health Assessment is therefore not a stand-alone dementia screening program, and it does not diagnose dementia. It is a valuable opportunity to discuss changes that might otherwise be missed in a brief appointment and to plan any follow-up that is clinically needed.
Medicare eligibility does not automatically mean every practice will charge no fee. Ask your practice about eligibility, appointment length and any possible out-of-pocket cost when booking.
If you are under 75, the absence of a dedicated 75+ assessment does not close the door. Book an appropriate GP appointment and explain that you want to discuss a change in memory, concentration, thinking, mood or behaviour.
Reducing your risk, starting well before 65
Not every case of dementia can be prevented. However, the 2024 Lancet Commission identified 14 potentially modifiable factors across the life course and estimated that addressing them could prevent or delay up to 45% of dementia cases globally. This is about lowering risk, not guaranteeing prevention or blaming anyone who develops dementia.9
The factors include lower levels of education, hearing loss, high LDL cholesterol, depression, traumatic brain injury, physical inactivity, diabetes, smoking, high blood pressure, obesity, excessive alcohol consumption, social isolation, air pollution and untreated vision loss.9
Many practical steps are already part of good general healthcare: have blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes identified and managed; stay physically active; avoid smoking; limit harmful alcohol use; protect your head; address hearing or vision loss; seek help for depression; and remain socially connected and mentally engaged.9
How to start the conversation
- If you, or a parent or grandparent, are 75 or over, book the health assessment. It is free for most patients and only takes one appointment a year.
- If you have noticed a change in memory, thinking, mood or behaviour, in yourself or someone close to you, mention it at your next appointment rather than waiting to see if it settles.
- Call the National Dementia Helpline on 1800 100 500 if you have a question and are not sure it is worth a GP visit yet. It is free, and it is there for exactly that.10
- Have the conversation with family before it is urgent. Advance care planning is easier to discuss calmly than in a crisis.
- Look at your own modifiable risk factors today, regardless of your age. Hearing, blood pressure and activity levels are worth checking well before 65, not after.
Where this leaves you
Dementia Action Week is a prompt to replace avoidance with a useful conversation. You do not need to be 75. You do not need to have an ageing parent or a family history. You do not need to be certain that something is wrong.
If there has been a persistent change, a GP can help work out what should happen next. A cognitive screening tool may form part of the process, but the complete clinical assessment around it is what gives the result meaning.
And if you have no current symptoms, the topic still belongs to you. The same appointments that address blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, hearing, vision, mental health, smoking and physical activity are opportunities to support long-term brain health.
| Take the Next Step for Your Brain HealthTo book a 75+ health assessment, or to talk to your GP about a change you have noticed in memory, thinking or mood, book an appointment with your local Qualitas Medical Practice GP today. |
This article is general information only and is not a substitute for individual medical advice. Speak with your GP about your own circumstances.
References
1. Dementia Australia. Dementia Action Week, 21-27 September 2026. https://www.dementia.org.au/get-involved/dementia-action-week
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics. Causes of Death, Australia, 2024. Released 14 November 2025. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/causes-death/causes-death-australia/latest-release
3. Dementia Australia. Dementia facts and figures. Updated 23 June 2026. https://www.dementia.org.au/about-dementia/dementia-facts-and-figures
4. Dementia Australia. Genetics and dementia. Updated 19 December 2025. https://www.dementia.org.au/about-dementia/genetics-and-dementia
5. Dementia Australia. About dementia. Updated 22 June 2026. https://www.dementia.org.au/about-dementia
6. Dementia Australia. Dementia testing and diagnosis. https://www.dementia.org.au/about-dementia/dementia-testing-and-diagnosis
7. Healthdirect Australia. Tests used in diagnosing dementia. https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/tests-used-in-diagnosing-dementia
8. Australian Government, Medicare Benefits Schedule. Item 705 and explanatory note AN.0.39: Older Person’s Health Assessment. Publication date 1 March 2026. https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?q=705&type=item
9. Livingston G, Huntley J, Liu KY, et al. Dementia prevention, intervention, and care: 2024 report of the Lancet standing Commission. The Lancet. 2024;404(10452):572-628. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(24)01296-0.
10. Dementia Australia. National Dementia Helpline. https://www.dementia.org.au/get-support/national-dementia-helpline
