The Sustainable Personalised Interventions for Cognition, Care, and Engagement (SPICE) program is the first of its kind in Australia. The groundbreaking program works to slow down disease progression, give carers strategies and support, reduce the use of health services and hospitalisation, enable people to remain in their homes longer, and maximise quality of life. The successful program has seen positive impacts on families and communities.

The SPICE program launched in 2022 following collaborative program design undertaken by UC and Canberra Health Service and supported by Dementia Australia Research Foundation and the Dementia Australia Advocates program. 

The novel and innovative 12-week program is designed for people with dementia and their care partners to offer support, information, active rehabilitation, group discussions, carer education, and personalised strategies. The SPICE program fills a critical gap in dementia care for people living in the ACT and provides a post-diagnostic pathway to optimise health and wellbeing, and connection to health social and community services. The program activities are delivered by a range of allied health professionals including occupational therapists, neuropsychologists, clinical psychologists, social workers, pharmacists, speech pathologists, dietitians, physiotherapists, and nurses.

“It’s a program to help the carers, and the carers to cope with dementia, but also to give the dementia patients social connection, enjoyment, yeah, laughter”.  

Program success

The SPICE program started as a one-year pilot with four groups: however the program’s success lead to funding for an additional 18 months and ten extra groups of up to seven people with dementia and their seven care partners in each. 

Research findings demonstrated significant improvements in reported quality of life of the person with dementia with increased functional ability, and a reduction in neuropsychiatric symptoms and a reduction in associated care partner burden. Program satisfaction ratings are high with participants wanting to continue with the program components afterwards. 

Before the SPICE program, there was no dementia-specific program in the ACT Health system. The SPICE program provides a safe and respectful space where people are understood. The participants feel included and heard and have a level of confidence they may not experience in other settings. SPICE staff have observed the mutual benefit and catalyst of the social dynamics of the group-based sessions where staff, care partners and people with dementia can interact in enjoyable and stimulating activities.

Care partners report feel a sense of belonging, increase their understanding of dementia and how to communicate with their loved one, and feel equipped with strategies and where to find support: 

“It probably made me more aware of certain aspects of the disease and ways to, to minimise the effect on us, to basically just ways of dealing with it, that we could, different aspects... This is how you can cope with that type of behaviour, or even just finding your way around the house and that sort of different ways of doing that. And practical things like making sure there's enough lighting. Yeah, so yeah, so that's all helpful. All the practical side - that was really good.”

People with dementia report the program is useful and provides enjoyment and socialisation:

“I changed because of the people in the group, and I think it was useful. It changed my confidence.”

Carers observe positive changes in the person with dementia and that they benefit from being in a ‘safe space’ where they are respected and understood: 

“It gave [them] a lot more confidence in [their] physical abilities and mobility ….and made [them] feel that [they] were a lot more worthwhile in life than [they] thought before we started the program and it's given [them] the confidence now to actually try some new things now that [they] were not prepared to consider before the program… It's given [them] the confidence to do things away from me and it's meant that when [they’re] worried about something, we've been able to talk about it and talk about everything we learned in the program that [they] can use and it's shown [them] that [they] can still do things and can still enjoy things.”

The SPICE program is also facilitating community conversations and a better understanding of the experiences of living with dementia as an acquired disability and the rights to rehabilitation and a meaningful life for those living with dementia.

What’s next for SPICE

It is expected that by the end of 2024 over 150 people will have benefitted directly from the SPICE program with a waitlist of over 100 people waiting to enrol. 

The UC Centre for Aging Research and Translation (CARAT) research group are investigating the long-term impacts for participants and the economy, for example avoidance of hospitalisations and ED visits and the health savings by reduction of health system episodes. 

The SPICE program has been funded by the ACT government until the end of 2024. Canberra Health Services have 3.5 years of federal funding to commence in January 2025 and the successful collaboration with CARAT at the University of Canberra Hospital will maximise the integrity and continued success of the program moving into the future. 

Interest in the SPICE program nationally is also increasing in anticipation of the upcoming release of the National Dementia Action Plan as well as a new SPICE For Life collaboration with Carers ACT to enable graduates of SPICE to continue with allied health intervention.

Research team

Centre for Aging Research and Translation and staff of Faculty of Health

• Nathan D’Cunha 
• Diane Gibson
• Kasia Bail 
• Stephen Isbel
• Lara Wiseman 
• Georgina Chelberg
• Helen Holloway
• Rachael Mitterfellner
• Michelle Bennett
• Louise Barrett

Learn more

Groundbreaking program proves effective in enhancing dementia care in Canberra, The RiotAct 2023

A pilot program for helping people with dementia continue to live at home has seen promising results from its initial work, WIN News Canberra Facebook, News bulletin 2023

SPICE extends quality of life for Canberrans with dementia, Canberra Daily, 2023

University of Canberra’s SPICE program helps dementia patients and carers, The Canberra Times 2023