At AussieCare, our clients are perceived as unique, and we embrace their individuality, and we have a firm understanding that they have needs that are unique to them. For this reason, we offer coordination of supports that allows each of our customer’s self-determination, by assisting for our client to implement their plans by strengthening the ability to connect with the broader community systems of supports.

At AussieCare, we understand that being connected to the community matters to our customer’s well-being and that loneliness and social isolation could be detrimental to their physical and mental health. For this reason, we offer three levels of support coordination, providing as much or as little assistance as you need. For all three spheres of support coordination, we utilise the asset-based approach.

As an organisation, we understand that our clients do not live in isolation and that they are part of the wider community. Therefore we assist in helping our client to understand the purpose of the funded supports and client in the community.

We use asset-based approach to offer upfront assistance in helping you find the right Support Connection identifying and connecting our client with the services and providers that support their needs and goals.

At AussieCare, we are committed to assisting our client in manoeuvring all aspects of their NDIS support plan. The aim of coordination of supports is to increase our customer’s capacity to maintain support relationships, resolve service delivery issues, and to participate independently in NDIA processes. At AussieCare, we will answer questions as they arise, and in collaboration with our client, we will come up with solutions to any challenges and meet our client needs.

THE THREE LEVELS OF COORDINATION OF SUPPORTS

LEVEL 1: SUPPORT CONNECTION

Support Connection is time-limited assistance to strengthen customer’s ability to connect with informal, mainstream and funded supports, and to increase capacity to maintain support relationships, resolve service delivery issues, and participate independently in NDIA processes.

Support Connection is a non-ongoing service focussed on enabling the client to connect to supports in the plan. The word “connection” is appropriate for the support that assists the client to establish arrangements with funded providers and to build a network of informal and mainstream supports.

Support Connection’s primary focus is helping the client to start their plan implementation by assisting them to:

  • Identify options (funded, mainstream and in informal networks).
  • Investigate options.
  • Understand funding flexibility.
  • Reach decisions regarding services.
  • Reach an agreement with providers.
  • Commence service and ensure new support arrangements thrive.

Through the provision of this support, it is expected that our client will gain skills to participate in NDIA processes, and gain independence in creating and maintaining supports.

In the first client plan, Support Connection may be made available for the full duration of the plan (up to 12 months) to support the client to learn how to:

  • Activate their plan (i.e. a link to service providers).
  • Monitor quality and spend of services.
  • Manage flexibility within the plan.
  • Prepare for review.
  • Address barriers to participation.
  • Resolve service delivery issues.

During subsequent (review) plans, Support Linkages would be provided for a specific purpose, such as to support the client to change service provider, or build capacity to achieve specific community participation goals, as opposed to the first year where it may be provided to orient the client to implement their plan more generically.

LEVEL 2: SUPPORT COORDINATION

Assistance to strengthen the client’s abilities to connect to and coordinate informal, mainstream and funded supports in a complex service delivery environment. This includes resolving points of crisis, developing capacity and resilience in a client’s network and coordinating supports from a range of sources.

Support Coordination has the features of Support Connection, with an increased focus on:

  • Addressing barriers to participation and
  • Resolving service delivery issues.

In addition to the features of Support Connection, Support Coordination would focus on:

  • Regular active management and ongoing adjustment of supports due to client’s
  • changing needs.
  • Management of multiple/complex supports from a range of providers which intersect with mainstream services.
  • Crisis resolution and developing resilience.
  • Regular monitoring and outcome reporting for the client/NDIA
  • In the first client plan, Support Coordination may be made available to enable the client to activate their plan and learn about other aspects of the planning cycle, including preparing for the review.

If Support Coordination is required in a review plan, it would be provided for a specific purpose, such as to support the client to change service provider, or to resolve specific points of crisis or barriers affecting support, as opposed to the first year where it may be provided to orient the client to implement their plan more generically.

LEVEL 3: SPECIALIST SUPPORT COORDINATION

The provision of Support Coordination within a specialist framework necessitated by specific high-level risks in the client’s situation. This support is time-limited and focuses on addressing barriers and reducing complexity in the support environment while assisting the client in connecting with supports and building capacity and resilience.

Specialist Support Coordination includes all the activities outlined in “Support Coordination”, but addresses situations where it is appropriate to have a specialist deliver Support Coordination-style activities, necessitated by specific high-level risks in the client’s situation.

Specialist Support Coordination is time-limited and focuses on addressing barriers and reducing complexity in the support environment while assisting the client in connecting with supports and building capacity and resilience.

For Specialist Support Coordination to be included within a plan, there must be clear benefits to the client that result from this model of supports coordination. It is anticipated that this support will be very rarely required and only under exceptional circumstances. Specialist Support Coordination must include clear goals for the duration of the first plan that aims to decrease the need for this high-intensity support to continue. It is expected that if coordination is required beyond the first plan, the NDIA will recommend Support Coordination, rather than Specialist Support Coordination.

ROLE OF A FUNDED COORDINATOR OF SUPPORTS

Concerning NDIA’s definition of Support Coordination, the primary role of a Support Coordinator is to:

  • Support implementation of all supports in the plan, including informal, mainstream and community, as well as funded supports.
  • Strengthen and enhance the client’s abilities to coordinate supports and participate in the community.
  • Ensure mainstream services meet their obligations (i.e. housing, education, justice, health).
  • Build the capacity of the client to achieve greater independence to self-direct services and supports in the longer term.
  • Provide the NDIA with reports on outcomes and success indicators within the agreed reporting frequency.

A Support Coordinator will assist you in:

  • Understand how you can use your NDIS plan to meet your goals.
  • Manage those resources effectively to get the best outcome from your plan.
  • Work with other people in your circle of support (family, friends, service providers, therapists and community and mainstream supports such as doctors) to meet the goals of your unique NDIS plan.
  • Teach you how to access the NDIS portal so you can monitor how your funds are being spent.
  • Monitor the progress and outcomes of achieving your goals.
  • Assisting you to prepare for your next NDIS review meeting.