http://www.brisinst.org.au/resources/sando_disable.html
FYI
The revolution in disability services
Date: 03 August 2000
Author: Wayne Sanderson
Think bureaucracy and government service delivery and you
normally
don't think risk taking, flexibility and focusing on what the
client wants.
But those are three key features of the changes currently
sweeping
through disability services in Queensland, a change Minister
Anna Bligh
describes as a quiet revolution.
Before you get to those seismic shifts though, it is a major
development
just to have a Disability Services Minister in Queensland
(Bligh is the first)
and to be giving increased resources to the area (a 42 percent
increase
in the life of this Government).
As Ms Bligh concedes, that this will still leave Queensland
spending
around half the national average gives service providers,
officers of DSQ and people with disabilities.
Priority ratings go from Category 1 (urgent and critical) to
4.
Adult Lifestyle Support Packages are then allocated to people
depending
on their ranking on the register.
NEW INDIVIDUALISED SERVICES
ADULT LIFESTYLE SUPPORT PACKAGES: These are new
individualised support packages for adults with high support
needs. The
funding is allocated to a person, not a service. For the first
time this gives
the person with disabilities consumer choice to shop around
for the best
service rather than simply be forced to accept what they've
been given.
This has demanded a massive shift in thinking. We have started
to fit
services to people rather than fit people to services.
FAMILY SUPPORT PACKAGES
Family support provides flexible supports to families to help
avert crisis.
Funding is allocated on the philosophy "What will take to make
a
difference?" The early results of this program are very
encouraging. Early
intervention through flexible practical solutions is keeping
families
together, keeping them from breaking point.
Examples include:
Providing funding for washing machine to a mother whose child
is
incontinent as a result of their disability. The washing
machine was
broken, she couldn't afford to fix it. We bought her a new
washing
machine and it has made all the difference to her.
We have flown up the grandparents of a family to give the
parents
respite in their own home and strengthen family ties.
We funded a communication device for young girl who couldn't
sleep
and as result her family couldn't rest. With the device the
girl revealed she
was troubled by her medication. Her parents were able to
change the
medication and the child can now sleep. Her family no longer
needs
respite support.
LOCAL AREA COORDINATION SERVICES
Local area coordination services are proving very successful
in regional
areas where there has traditionally been few support services.
There are six pilots being trialed in regional areas across
the State.
The coordinators work with people with disabilities and their
families to
identify and meet their needs by providing information,
advocacy, and
support and, in some cases, direct funding for families or
individuals.
They connect families with available supports to meet their
individual
family circumstances. This may involve them helping people
with
disabilities to gain in-home support, support at school or
improved
access to transport, community activities, health care, or
employment.
They tap into existing community support networks to reduce
isolation
and improve quality of life through greater integration in to
their
community.
They have also have access to small amounts of discretionary
funds to
provide one off support.
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URL: http://www.brisinst.org.au/resources/sando_disable.html
Last Modified: Thursday, 03-Aug-2000 16:58:52 EST
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