A 12-month nurse-led programme with a goal-tracking app improved estimated dementia risk scores for middle-aged adults across 31 Australian general practices, a Monash-led trial published in The Lancet Regional Health - Western Pacific found.
New research led by Monash University shows a multi-domain dementia risk reduction programme delivered by general practice nurses can improve estimated dementia risk profiles in middle-aged adults.
Published in The Lancet Regional Health - Western Pacific, the study evaluated more than 403 adults aged 45 to 65 years with modifiable risk factors across 31 Australian general practices. Participants in the intervention received five nurse consultations, a custom action plan and access to the HAPPI MIND app, while the control group received standard risk assessment results and educational material.
After 12 months, 56% of participants in the intervention programme showed improvement in their risk scores, compared with 44% in the comparison group. The gains were driven mainly by protective lifestyle changes, including increased physical activity, improved fish intake and better body mass index status.
Monash reports the trial as a study of estimated risk profiles, not of prevented diagnoses: co-author Amanda Cross said the trial measured changes in estimated risk profiles over 12 months rather than tracking long-term clinical diagnoses or preventing cognitive decline, while noting the metrics remain important predictors. Senior author Johnson George described the model as a personalised health check and coaching programme for brain health, with nurses helping people turn advice into practical targets and the app helping them track progress between appointments.
The result matters because it tests a delivery model general practice could adopt, rather than a new drug. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare estimates 459,000 Australians are living with dementia in 2026, a total expected to exceed 1 million by 2066. Future work will examine 36-month follow-up data to test whether the early improvements last, which will decide whether wider delivery is justified.