‘Stronger Together’ through partnerships

1. ‘Stronger Together’ through partnerships Specialist Disability Services and the Office of the Senior Practitioner

2. Ageing, Disability and Home Care David Coyne Executive Director Office of the Senior Practitioner Ageing, Disability and Home Care Department of Family and Community Services NSW

3. ADHC forging partnerships • Stronger Together – an overview • Partnerships initiated by the Office of the Senior Practitioner • Therapeutic Memorandum of Understanding

4. ADHC forging partnerships • Ageing, Disability and Home Care works in partnership across the sector. This includes: • Individuals with a disability and their family/carers • Funded organisations • Advocacy bodies • Other Government agencies

5. Stronger TogetherA New Direction for Disability Services in NSW 2006 – 2016 Key areas identified for reform included: • making access to services fairer and more transparent • helping people to remain in their own home • linking services to need • expanding options for people who were living in specialist support services, and • creating a sustainable support system.

6. Achievements of the First Five Years • Strengthening families through 8000 new therapy, early childhood intervention and family support services • 6000 families are able to access the Family Assistance Fund to purchase equipment and services • 4000 new respite services to provide relief for carers • Expanded and improved post school options • Assisting 1500 disabled school leavers into employment with intensive skills based training • Providing a further 300 people with intensive in-home support packages to enable them to remain with their families

7. Expanding accommodation and support to a further 1000 people through the Innovative Accommodation Plan • Creating 4000 new case management places to support families • Doubling the service capacity of funded services (NGO’s) • Improving the system’s capacity and accountability through the development of a five year industry strategy • This will ensure capacity, structure and regulation needs would be met into the future • The establishment of the workforce recruitment strategy has led to 6000 job applications being registered since in January 2010.

8. 2006 - 2011 International • 2007 - United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities National Council of Australian Governments (COAG) • 2009 - National Disability Agreement • 2011- National Disability Strategy - National Disability and Long Term Care Support Scheme - National Health and Hospital Reform Agreement

9. “Until the concept of disability disappears and is replaced by a society that is structured to support everyone’s life relatedness and contribution - until that day, my life and opportunities and the lives of every other person who carries the label ‘disabled’ depends on the goodwill of people in the human service system. Goodwill is no substitute for freedom.” National People with Disabilities and Carer Council - National Disability Strategy Consultation Report (2009)

10. Stronger Together Phase Two • Person centred approaches • A lifespan approach • Closure of Large Residential Centres • A service system with the capacity to deliver

11. Office of the Senior Practitioner • Policy and Practice Team • Statewide Behaviour Intervention Service • Integrated Services Program • Community Justice Program

12. Office of the Senior Practitioner with ADHC

13. Statewide Behaviour Intervention Service • Provides comprehensive tertiary support, training and capacity building to both ADHC and NGO service providers who work with people who have challenging behaviour • Focus on research and practice development in the area of behaviour support • Specialised Training Programs • Developmental Psychiatry Clinic • Framework for Professional Practice - partnership with Children’s Hospital at Westmead

14. Integrated Services Program • Partnership project led by ADHC with Health and Housing commenced in 2005 now with recurrent funding • High-risk adults with multiple and complex needs • Significant barriers to accessing coordinated cross-agency responses • Clients nominated from Sydney based human services agencies • Aims to promote coordinated cross-agency responses and direct provision of time-limited services, including comprehensive assessment, clinical intervention, case management and accommodation support • Overseen by a program management committee consisting of officers from ADHC, Mental Health Drug and Alcohol Office, Housing NSW and advised by a broader interagency reference group

15. Integrated Service Program Target Group • Adults with high risk challenging behaviour • One or more of the following diagnoses: • mental disorder • intellectual disability • acquired brain injury/impairment • substance abuse • Blocking an acute mental health unit or respite service, homeless, or in gaol • Significant barriers to accessing services and securing coordinated multi- agency support • Local support options exhausted

16. Community Justice Program • Specialised post custodial accommodation and service support models • Candidates for the program are accepted through an eligibility and prioritisation process • Entry recommendations made by panel of representatives from Juvenile Justice, Corrective Services, ADHC Regional Behaviour Support Specialist and a community sector delegate • Direct support provided by ADHC Regional and funded NGO service providers • Provides specialised training as well as ongoing capacity building and service monitoring for service providers • Working relationships with Mental Health Review Tribunal, Trustee and Guardian, Justice Health, Corrective Services and Juvenile Justice

17. Community Justice Program Target Group • Clients must be eligible for ADHC services • Ages 10 - 65 • Ongoing contact with the criminal justice system, resulting in time spent in custody • Continuing risk of re-offending • Outside ADHC Regional response • Court mandate is not required

18. Policy and Practice Team Policy and project focus on: • Behaviour Support • Mental Health • Justice Services • Chair, Intellectual Disability Mental Health UNSW Secretariat for: • Senior Officers Group on Intellectual Disability in the Criminal Justice System - Attorney General and Justice, Corrective Services, Juvenile Justice, Housing, Justice Health, Department of Education and Communities and the NSW Police Force • Joint Committee Intellectual Disability Mental Health – partnership between ADHC and NSW Ministry of Health

19. Practice Leadership The Office of the Senior Practitioner leads ADHC practice in: • Psychology • Physiotherapy • Speech Pathology • Occupational Therapy • Nursing Practice Leaders provide expert high level support and advice to ADHC in order to facilitate agency-wide, consistent, best practice services to people with an intellectual disability.

20. Practice Leader Psychology • Development of workforce capacity and linking with universities • Practice Supervision Framework for ADHC Psychologists • Development of minimum core standards/competencies • Professional Development • Motivational Interviewing Project • Practice improvement and evidence base practice

21. Practice Leader Speech Pathology • Development of workforce capacity • Professional development for ADHC staff in the areas of: • Inclusive Communication and Behavioural Support • Training in Dysphagia assessment and screening tool • Accessible Information • Key Word Signing • Development of minimum core standards/competencies • Research project with University of Sydney – ‘Barriers and enablers to the use evidence based practice by Speech Pathologists in ADHC’ • Innovative uses of various communication technologies • Collaboration with Westmead Hospital to develop referral guidelines for people with dysphagia.

22. Practice Leader Physiotherapy • Develops workforce capacity in Physiotherapy • Development of specific core standards/competencies • Is developing a training and supervision framework for ADHC Physiotherapists • Coordinates the University and Disability Sector Therapy Project Reference Group • Leads a research project on the therapeutic use of Nintendo Wii for people with Intellectual Disability • Establishes best practice guidelines for ADHC Physiotherapists

23. Practice Leader Occupational Therapy • Development of minimum core standards/competencies • Developing work force capacity framework to establish student placement program, professional and clinical development • Researching use of sound clinical outcome measures when providing services to people with disabilities • Training Project - Playfulness in Care: Enhancing the Quality of Life for Children in Out of Home Care

24. Practice Leader Nursing and Health Care • Provides expert advice in the development of workforce capacity in specialised disability nursing and health care • Representative on Nursing Workforce Planning Group • Facilitating consistent supervision and professional development framework for nurses across all ADHC settings • Palliative Care joint initiative with NSW Health • Development of the Nursing and Healthcare Procedures Manual

25. Department of Family and Community Services NSW Ministry of Health Ageing, Disability and Home Care Department of Education and Communities Community Services Memorandum of UnderstandingAccess to Therapy Services for People with Disability and their families in NSW A set of agreed principles, roles and areas of focus that NSW Government human service agencies have identified to improve access to therapy services for people with a disability and their families and carers in NSW.

26. Background • Therapy service system in NSW is complex and was provided by a range of government and non-government organisations • These organisations had different purposes, operating contexts and areas of focus • They provided different services, eligibility criteria and assessment requirements and processes • These complexities make navigating the therapy system to obtain a service difficult for people with a disability, their families and supporters • From initial screening to receiving a therapy service some people are required to undergo multiple assessments or move between agencies to get the therapy service they need.

27. Roles of participating agencies • NSW Health provides therapy services on the basis of prioritised clinical need. Services are provided in inpatient, non-inpatient and community settings. • Department of Education provides a range of services to support students with a disability in public schools across NSW, including specialist support classes, special schools and targeted support programs for students with a disability in regular classes • Ageing, Disability and Home Care is a major provider of therapy services for people with a disability in NSW. Like NSW Health, ADHC employs a full range of therapists, though their roles are solely to work with those with a disability.

28. Community Services is responsible for children and young people in out-of-home care, as well as children and young people living with their families and carers who have been assessed as being at risk of harm or neglect • Non-government organisations and the private sector services meet their therapy needs of many people with a disability.

29. Desired Outcomes of the MOU • Establish a more consistent and equitable process for people with a disability to access to therapy services across NSW • Make the journey easier and quicker for people with a disability and their families/carers to access the right services • Enable more people with a disability to have access to the therapy services that they need • Make more effective and efficient use of existing resources and therapy workforce across agencies.

30. Focus • Increase collaboration at all levels - centrally, regionally and locally • Increase coordination in the delivery of services • Clarify and promote understanding of the respective roles and responsibilities • Streamline referral pathways, information sharing and communication • Work towards an agreed approach to eligibility, assessment and prioritisation • Establish evidence-based flexible service delivery models • Make optimal use of resources, services and initiatives.

31. Principles • Access to services will be based on the individual’s needs • Service delivery will be individual and family focussed • Service delivery will respect and acknowledge diversity • Service delivery will be based on collaborative practice and good communication.

32. Service delivery will meet quality standards and be cost effective • Continuous improvement in service coordination between agencies

33. Office of the Senior Practitioner Ageing, Disability and Home Care Department of Family and Community Services PO Box 3004 PARRAMATTA NSW 2124 Phone: 02 9841 9218 Fax: 02 9841 9211