Australia-first dementia care ward opens at Repat on Tuesday

A new unit opening tomorrow for people with severe dementia symptoms was built with the Oakden scandal’s lessons at its heart, the government says.

Artist’s impressions of the planned Neurobehavioural Unit.

A new specialised unit to care for people living with the most extreme symptoms of

dementia opens tomorrow as the next step in the reactivation of the Repat Health Precinct.

Patients with advanced dementia will be treated at the new, specialised Repat Neuro-

Behavioural Unit (NBU) in the refurbished previous Ward 18 unit.

The government says the NBU is an Australian-first and is part of the recommendations of the inquiry into the Oakden scandal.

Recruitment and training for the first group of highly specialised staff for the unit has

now been completed following the end of construction last August and the first patients in the 18-bed unit will start arriving tomorrow.

News ADV South Australian Health Minister Stephen Wade during a stand-up interview at Victoria Square. Picture: AAP/Russell Millard

Artist’s impressions of the planned Neurobehavioural Unit.

Health and Wellbeing Minister Stephen Wade said in the wake of Oakden the government made a commitment to develop the best possible care for people living with extreme symptoms of dementia.

“The facility has been designed in partnership with people with lived experience of dementia,

including families of former Oakden residents as well as carers of people living with dementia,” he said.

“We have recruited a high-quality team of over 40 highly skilled and specialised staff – doctors, nurses, allied health staff, carer consultant and support staff, to care for the first tranche of patients who will begin to move into the country’s first NBU on Tuesday.”

Southern Adelaide Local Health Network’s consultant psychiatrist and head of unit for the Older Persons Mental Health Service, Dr Michael Page, said the unit is made up of three, six bed pods designed to provide dignified and compassionate care in a less restrictive setting.

Artist’s impressions of the planned Neurobehavioural Unit.

Artist’s impressions of the planned Neurobehavioural Unit.

“The NBU provides an appropriate environment for South Australians with the most extreme

behavioural and psychological dementia symptoms and integrating their care alongside the other specialised services and facilities at the Repat,” Dr Page said.

“It has been designed as a safe, open plan space where our consumers will be able to experience everyday things they enjoyed at home, as well as quiet areas where families will be able to gather, interact and share meals.”

The NBU is located next to the Specialised Advanced Dementia Unit that cares for patients with both complex dementia and acute medical conditions, and the site of the new 78-bed Dementia Care Facility now being built by HammondCare.