Measure 6.4 Increased access to and use of culturally appropriate respite care by people living with dementia and carers from First Nations, CALD and other diverse communities
Respite care for people living with dementia means the person living with dementia is cared for while their usual carer takes a break. However, respite care is limited and the respite options available don’t always meet the diverse needs of people living with dementia and their carers.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Nations) people living with dementia and their carers may not access the respite services they need, particularly if the respite services available are not culturally-appropriate.
People living with dementia from cultural and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds experience cultural and language barriers in accessing services and may have difficulties expressing their needs in English (Department of Health 2019).
Respite services need to be more culturally appropriate and led by First Nations communities and diverse population groups. If culturally appropriate respite care is not readily available, there can be negative outcomes for people living with dementia and their carers, including carer burnout, health deterioration, and premature entry into permanent residential care.
There are no data currently available to track this measure of progress and data development is needed. For further information about data limitations for these priority groups see Better dementia data on high priority groups.
Department of Health (2019) Actions to support older CALD people: a guide for aged care providers, Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, Australian Government, accessed 6 October 2025.