Dementia: opportunities for risk reduction and early detection in general practice.

This project aimed to measure general practitioner (GP), practice nurse and patient health literacy about memory problems, dementia and its risk factors. Data were collected from general practices across Australia and a smaller sample in England. Questionnaires explored sources and adequacy of dementia knowledge and a randomised controlled trial tested the intervention of a dementia risk reduction pamphlet on patient knowledge of dementia risk reduction strategies.

Bowel cancer screening in Australia.

Background: Modern screening tools have the potential to decrease mortality and morbidity from bowel cancer, the second commonest cause of cancer death. The evaluation of the recent National Bowel Cancer Screening Pilot Program (NBCSPP) in Australia has prompted the commonwealth government to fund the first phase of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program in May 2006.

Objective: This article discusses the evidence for bowel cancer screening and the outcomes of the NBCSPP.