Disability Care Australia and Community Participation

One of the driving themes behind the NDIS campaign and now the introduction of Disability Care Australia is the desire for people with disabilities and their families to participate in all areas of life and to have the same freedom to fully participate in society.

There are many places, events and activities which people with disabilities have felt excluded from. Either through the inability to physically access like beaches, pubs, swimming pools, restaurants, art galleries, theaters; or poor access to education and learning supports; limited access braille services and hearing loops, the cost and limited funding for assistance dogs, including guide dogs; cost and delays in home modifications and mobility aids and lack of funding for appropriate support care.

             

The introduction of Disability Care Australia does more than ensure people with disabilities and their families receive the correct types of supports and equipment to meet their needs. It brings Australia into line with UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.  People with disabilities as standing up and saying, I simply want to be counted in!

Many have mistaken the NDIS campaign for another grab for 'entitlements' or 'welfare'! The popular myth: people with disabilities are content with being 'spectators' in society, this is certainly not true in my case nor my friends withe disabilities.  The majority of people I know with disabilities are either engaged in study, community, full time employment or are small business owners like myself. People despite the barriers;  lack of support and community attitudes go out and crave their way into the community.

For me one of the larger challengers of Disability Care Australia will be to reshape our view of 'disability'.  That is to challenge the traditional view or stereotype of disability, to see the abilities, talents and skills that people with disability, to explore new possibilities for people with disabilities and admit past attitude have limited the people with all disabilities.

I personally do not believe we have begun to explore the possibilities that people with disabilities and their families can enjoy with all that advances in medical science; technologically, communications and methods of education have to offer.  The education system continues to allows the labeling of students with disabilities and the schools the attend.  There is no need for the would "Special" to be used in the name of a school.  Just because that school caters  solely for the needs of students with disabilities.  The idea that having a disabilities makes as "special" or "different" is outdated and continues to feed myths and inappropriate attitude to those who deal with disability as part of their daily lives.

Complying with UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. means taking a mature attitude. To treat all people the same.  We need to treat adult with disabilities as adults and require more of them and ourselves.  Individuals need to be treated according to the physical age not the intellectual comparability we mentally assume them to have.  For so often our assumptions are incorrect.

If working with young people with high support needs taught me one thing, time and time again it is how much I underestimate people with intellectual and behavioral disabilities is they deliver so much more than I require of them and the always give a 110%

Means people with disabilities and their families want to be part of every aspect of the Australia way of life and enjoy everything that our beautiful country has to offer. For we too come from the land down under!

What are the possibilities?

As we approach the introduction of Disability Care Australia on my blog at present we are stopping . . . 

Waiting . . . 

And preparing . . .

To ask What is possible? 

. . . If we don't allow our attitude to define our disabilities . . .  

Herr's an example of one teacher who encourage every girl to do her best and encourage her dreams. 

How about you?

What are your dreams and hopes for your son or daughter?

What kind of future under Disability Care Australia do you see for them?

Education?

Sport?

Dance?

The Arts?

Acting?

Employment?

Independent Living?

Relationships?

Marriage? 

Buy their first Car?

In Australia this is the first time that mums and dads of children with serve disabilities will be asked what is it that you want for your child.  For the first time a parent will be asked do you want to give you're child the opportunity to learn to walk?  Would you like to see if your child can cope with mainstream schooling? Would you like a wheelchair adapted to enable your child to play sport?  These are all reasonable and fair request for support to enable a children to fully participate in the community in which they live. 

What is not reasonable or fair is the isolation families have endured as a result of a family member having a life time disability. This is the equality Disability Care Australia (NDIS) seeks to bring into our communities and lifestyles.  The goals of thias system are the goals people with disabilities and their families have told the government the want.  They have said we want to be counted it in!  We want to be included and we want a greater say in the direction we want our lives to take.

Just as this young girl's team mate willed her to shoot a goal, we want to cheer on the people with disabilities in our lives on.  Are you ready to ask what is possible? 

Disability Care Australia (NDIS) the first step towards full social inclusion

Exploring possibilities

The introduction of Disability Care Australia is a revolutionary concept that is designed to encourage and enable greater community inclusion of people with a disability.  Through the promotion of individual choice and the first real opportunity for people with significant disability and their families to have self-direction for their life based on their own hopes and dreams for the future. It is hoped where feasible people with disabilities will engaged in all aspects of community life give the right early intervention and support systems in their lives.

This is a move away from traditional values and attitudes that have previously seen people with disabilities  become isolated in their community either through disability or the time commitments involved in caring for a family member who has a significant disability meaning even family members have been excluded and isolated.

As we walk towards the implementation of Disability Care Australia previously known as the NDIS the challenges before us are great.  However our biggest challenge before us is to change the way we limit and define what is possible for a child or adult with disabilities, we in the past our expectations have been low and very limiting.

Along with improving physical access to buildings, the workplace and public transport we to need to see a major shift in attitudes towards people with disabilities and the inclusion of their families. If our attitudes, especially those of us who work in the disability sector are not challenged and expanded than the hopes and dreams of thousands of NDIS campaigners will be lost at we stand a the precepts of a revolution to ensure the social inclusion of people with disabilities.

This includes one of the biggest challenges for us, employment. People with disabilities tell us they want to work, however at the same time they have the right to meaningful employment and fair wages, not just the type of employment opportunities offered by sheltered workshops in the past.  Working towards full inclusion will require us to expand our horizons of what is possible even in the workplace and even force us to look for alternative ways to achieve our goals and work results, as seen in this story. 

 ABC journalist breaking new ground - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation):

'via Blog this'

I personal believe we have much to learn about ourselves, our attitudes and the self determination of people with disability and their families before earn even begin to let go of out previously preconceptions of what is possible and deactivated this inbuilt tendency to overprotect those with disabilities.  

Let us be excited about the possibilities tomorrow can bring . 

Choices creating possibilities!

Young man with Autism Graduates 

with his Masters!

It's a statement I hear often, It is not our disabilities that limit us, rather attitude and the attitudes of those around us. The change that has urushered in a new system of Disability Care in Australia, is on of the biggest shift in thinking Australia has even gone.  It requires a shift in thinking . . . and shift in attitude.

On July in 5 trail sites around Australia the doors to Disability Care Australia will open for the first time.  For the first time people with disabilities  the families and adult graudin will be given choices about the way the want the support needs to be meet. While Disability Care Australia will see in real injection of funding to meet the unmet needs of 10, 000's  of people living with primate serve disability, it also aims to 'revoluationalised  the way we have historically thought of disability and how we have 'cared' for these people.

Often during these debates I have heard these people refer to as 'the most vulnerable members of our community. Our ingrain first reaction and need to protect these individuals with disabilities is very strong. I living with a disability know first hand their are many people in our society ready to take advantaged of those who are traditionally viewed as having a weakness.  Sadly there is an element in our society that will exploit anyone with any type or weakness and we do not have to have a disability to fall pray to these people.  Our expressions tell powerfully stories of how we view people with disabilities and labeling them as being the most vulnerable people in the community, makes a powerful statement for protection.

However these statements and therefore judgments are made on traditional and historical views of people with disabilities. Historically people with disability and their families were isolated from their community. They were not given opportunities to be educated or seek employment.  No one challenge that their was more that one way people could play tennis and ruby.  People who need to mobilize in wheelchairs and artiphical limbs now compete on an international playing field.  My friends playing powerchair rub is a new normal even for me!

So as we march towards a new era in Disability Care we need as a society openly acknowledge that we need to work together to extend the bounds of "possibilities".  People with intellectual and sensory disabilities are now guarduating from high school and going on to territory education.  People of equal education levels should not been label 'vulnerable' on the bases of diagnoses along. 

Thus the first change we will see under Disability Care Australia is a shift in the way people with disabilities and their families are assessed.  Not longer will we ask what a person can't do, we will ask what the person who like to do or about the 'dreams' parents have for their children.  Even our fundamental assessment tools have contributed to the undervaluing of people with disabilities.  So in order to make these major changes and see a true enrichment in the lives of people with disabilities, their families and those who care for them we need to choose to ask smarter questions.  It a child with Cerebral Palsy has intensive physio is it possible the may be able to walk?  Not can your child walk?  

Hopefully as we shift the way we make our assessments and the way we define what is possible. Our natural insticts to protect to people with disabilities will decline and we will be willing to lossing the  puppet stings enough to give people real choice and real direction over their lives.

As my regular readers know to give people choices means we need to accept that some people with disabilities and some family members will make poor choices resulting in people being harmed in same way people chose to smoke.  To give people real choices means the person making the choice is responsible for the results good or bad.

One I the things that will leader to greater acceptance of choice is to begin now to ask ourselves, is it possible that my son or daughter could live independently in the community if they were given the right support.  It is only after we ask 'what is possible' when can then ask how do we make this possible, what are the right type of supports for 'my child'.  What does my child need help with to get out of bed ans to arrive at TAFE/work or the day centre on time?

To get the right answers, we need to learn how to ask the right questions.  To do this me need time to allow ourselves to explore possibilities that have never been there before. Need possibilities because of better supports, advances in medicine and technology, shifting in attitudes and more access to education and early intervention programs.

The first step we can take in this journey together is today.  Today we can start to change the question we are asking ourselves and service providers.  Today we can begin to ask what it possible given the opportunity to make different choice.  What could our future look like.  So when we reach our turn to switch to Disability Care Australia or be assess we already know the possibilities we want to make real!  Are you ready . . .  ?

Can you see my abilities

(c) Original Artwork by Debbie Chilton 

When people see me rolling down the street the make assumptions.  Don't tell me otherwise because I am guilty over the same thing.  A large of weight (the 'fat' word often followed by lazy comes to my mind.) struggling to walk towards Macer's in the food court . . . only the keep walking and order at subways.  Our eyes make many judgments. But as I have just illustrated, judgments are often incorrect.  Our eyes often see disabilities that registered in 'our mines' and Aline with other memories to form conclusions. Physical disability = intellectual disability, not so true in my case. 

People can see I clearly have disabilities but my true abilities are hidden.  Not many people in the community would assume I was a writer and artist and ever few would twig I have an Art's Degree.  Just making a general observation here that may be correct or incorrect. My piece of artwork above asks, ' can you see my abilities'?

I've not posted about my artwork or progress of leadership goals for a while.  Been so busy working on achieving them.  I have continued to spend one day a week on creating my art however a large portion of my week is spent developing my ArtISability program. 

   ArtISability is a professional development program I am developing for people with disability living in the Ipswich regional. Artist with disabilities have obstacles other artist don't face in a very competitive industry. Such as phsyical access to venues, art space, travel, finding accessible accommodation, access to training and workshop do to intellectual impairments, hearing impairments, visual impairement and reading written materials and all this is before we begin to deal with the assumptions others make about our disabilities.

One of the main focus of artisability is getting the creative space right.  The difficulty in locating accessible accomondation and art space in Ipswich is challegenes, which is something that tells me the huge need I will uncover for the program as physical access it the tip of the iceberg.  How do I move forward to create an accessible market place on graduation from the program. 

I also need an accessible art gallery to exhibit the work.  Then theres' all the everday challenges that every artist has as the begin.  My employment (earning money) vs my passion art work/life balance even as a arts worker this is a challenge, finance, marketing travel and training all need to be juggled in their too.

Training and learning support is the key component of the program, accessing training is differcult enough, without the access issues, learning support need for those who can't read or write or hear.  A spech impairment itself brings access issues.  So the program in focus around providing accessible training with the phsyical and learning support people need in place.  Things like accessing a support worker without having the burden of the cost.  Just trying to level the playing flied. 

As an artist with disability I know the reality of these challenges which is why I am setting up a facebook page to promote my work.  e 

     Doodles & Dribble

People can read about my work, view my work, find out where my work is on display and even purchase my work.  For now I am doing much of my own design work, so lagging a bit on the computer tech stuff but overall I am building some monment.  At present I have some work in the Ipswich show and next month I am off to Tassie for my first art show.  

From previous posts you have read my advocacy work and I still have six months left in the leadership program. . . 

If you can share the link to Doodles and Dribble with your friends and family I be beautiful for the free advertising. Oh an if you know any artists with disability living in Ipswich Queensland please tell them about the ArtISability program.  They can email me for an application form.

Cheers,

Debbie   

Disability Care Australia has counted us in!

Facts and Figures 

Budget 2013/2014

Regardless of what side of politics you support today marks the sign of a mature country as for the first time we acknowledge that in Australia Everybody counts! Including people with serve to profound disability. As  Disability Care Australia begins to rolled out on July 1 2013 five trail sites around Australia will begin delivering support to those with disabilities and their families based on the goals of an individual rather than simply based on their 'perceived needs'.

People with disabilities have united with one voice to say "count me in!" When the polls open on polling day "count me in!"; next time you design a new building "count me in!" ; when you're looking at town planning "count me in!" ; when you're advertising for new staff "count me in!" ; when you're designing a new building "count me in!" ;  when you're planning the 2018 Commonwealth Games "count me in!"  and wherever you celebrating being a proud Australian "I want to be counted in too!"

We are a proud sporting nation, just as we are proud of the many Australian sports men and women we as people with disabilities want to say counts us in as you celebrate and come celebrate with us to! As we celebrate on 16 May 2013 the passing of Disability Care Australia and the pledge to fund it well into the future was fully support by both sides of polices and all states except Western Australia today.

As Australians are about to go head to head in the next federal election, the budget seems to be emptied and promise little accept for people with a disability who have campaigned to BE COUNTED for many, many years. This year budget delivered them Disability Care Australia and secure funding for many years. 

Yesterday as the Prime Minster recalled some of the people in Queensland who personall;y thanked her for bring hope and meaning to their lives she wept, she felt with compassion. It was the same compassion I was greeted with last week.  I had few words for her as we looked eyes and she thanked me and I thanked her.  We knew we together along with tens of thousands of people had delivered a better future for people with disabilities   I knew she was geniune when she talks about the NDIS and now Disability Care, the NDIS means as much to her as it does to me. I know because I looked straight into her eyes myself. 

From July next year the Medicare levy will rise by 0.5% raising 20.4 billion dollars over the next four years to assist 460, 000 people (or about 2% of the general population) with disabilities and their families once the scheme is fully operational. No long will people have to fundraiser for a new wheelchair as their child grows and we can now begin to expand our minds to building purpose built accommodation for young people with a disability needing 24 hours support. No longer will age care be their only option. 

The community of Illawarra is one of the first launch site for Disability Care Australia beginning on July 1 this year.  Where approximation 8, 000 people with disabilities and their families are said to benefit from the schemes introduction. 

By 2020 people with disabilities and their family members will finally have the support the need to live full and meaningful lives in the community in which they choose to live, learn, work and play alongside every other Australian.  Because Australia we're in! 

May 15 2013 Prime Minter introduces Disability Care Australia to Parliament and breaks
in tears a she recalls the thank you card Sandy gave her. A card I had also signed and
watch Sandy hand it to her myself.  A day I witnessed history, a day I was very proud
to be an Australian who counted!

    

   

NDIS no longer an election issue

With the Disability Care Australian legislation funded by a 0..5% increase in the medicare level being introduced to Federal Parliament last night by Prime Minister Julia Gilard, the NDIS is no longer an election issue.  Its introduction is supported by both sides of politics and passed through the lower house unopposed.

A truly historical moment as a piece of legislation that started as a grass roots campaign through years of discussion with people with disabilities, their families and the people who work with them on a day to day bases.  A model of care giving people a greater say in how they wanted to be supported was developed and refined. It then underwent a parliamentary inquiry when people with disabilities and family members spoke directly to the inquiry to express their needs and frustrations.       

Currently people with disability live under a cloud of uncertainty. Even those who are currently receiving so funding to meet their support needs, years of political ping-pong leave them unsure of the future.  Many families feel trapped and isolated as funding is tied to an geographical reason and if a family member is transferred due to employment the family is forced to chose between looking for another job or giving up their current support networks with the very real risk there will be no support in the new locations.

These are conditions in the lives of those will disabilities and there families live with.  Conditions that other Australians could not possibility relate too.  Those fortunate to receive sure support are literally bound to an geographically area. 

Older careers with sons and daughters needing 24 hour care live in fear, 'what happens to my child when I die?'  The future has looked bleak for a very long time.  Its a society that has allowed people with very high needs live in nursing homes, while others have only received a shower once a week. A system liked to a lottery by some and justly unfair for others.  

Disability Care Australia is not a change in funding agreements between states and federal governments as a change in funding arrangements could not deliver the kinds of changes that people with disabilities and their families have demanded, campaigned and fought for over the last 5 years. 

I know in my home state of Queensland the Department of Disability Services was built of a fundamental flaw. If is a prehistoric system design in the 1970's to support ex residents of the state institutions to living in the community. In the main these were people thought to have high support physically and intellectual needs and under the care of the adult guardian and public trust.  Today about 46, 000 people with high support needs are supported by the Queensland government.

In recognizing his this original historical group supported by Disability Services Queensland has significant changed since the 1970's a total restructured to better reflect not only today's population but well into the future.  For the first time we will have a structure of disability care for future instead of applying band aids to gaping wounds. 

Disability Care Australia does more than provide hope to people with disabilities and than families. It is the first time that Australia has legislated to meet the basic Human Rights of Australians with disabilities. 

The right to not just enjoy a shower everyday, but a shower everyday at a time and a place of their choice the right to shower after playing sport, not before because that fits in with the staff at the service.  

The service provision model will move for meeting needs to assisting in obtaining goals over the next five years.  It a system designed to end isolation and allow full participation in community life, when, where and how people chose that occurs.  That choice needs to be made on an individual bases, what I choose will look very different to Mary living in Port Linkin South Australia and yet if I chose to move to Lizmore New South Wales  my care package for the first time will remain unchanged.

This is not just a funding reformed that can be changed in September when the opposition  is predicted to take power.  This is about to become law to begin to see social change from July 1 this year.  It is the one budget announcement that will be unchanged by a change in government.  I surspect if Labor wanting a budget to by votes the budget wouldn't of failed to deliver on promise are the promise. Delaying tax cuts is not a typical voting buying budget.  For once the right thing was done for all the right reasons. 

During the progress of writing this post the Disability Care Australia legislation was passed in the Senate.  The NDIS finally nailed in and there's no turning back. The introduction of the NDIS is no longer an election issues.  

Care Connect is an organization that prepares to

deliver support to individuals and families 

living with disability under 

Disability Care Australia.

Challenging the Meaning of Possibilty

They say a picture paints a thousands words as I struggle to aid you in your understanding of the new Disability Care Australia and who we as a community must begin to challenge what is possible I came across this u-tube clip. What do I mean by access to all areas.  I think in a historical context this pair of highly trained dances would of been denied access to this stage.

Certainly neither of this couple would qualify for assistance under Disability Care Australia.  Nor are they the types of impairments that the system seeks to assist.  The video does however challenge our preconceptions of disability and what is truly possible.  One by one each barrier must be removed as we march towards full inclusion and allow people access to all areas.  Not just a spectators but full participants in the recognition we are all gifted in some way.   

She without arm, he without leg - ballet - Hand in Hand - YouTube: 

The maze towards the introduction of Disability Care Australia is a difficult one, as we train our selves to ask what is possible and how do we get there.  Where are the safety nets in this new system?  How do we give people with disabilities and their families real choices with Access To All Areas while protecting their vulumberity to preparatory that may not want to play the game fairly. 

Tonight as I write this posts their are many questions I can not give you.All I can reassure you of is Wednesday's agreement between the state and federal government means for the first time people with disabilities have access to support and resources to enable them to access all areas of Australian live for the first time in history.

The people will like the two ballet dances can live lifestyles of their choosing, without being governed by geographically boundaries and locations where support services are available.  The workings to a system we calling market driven are not yet as clearly defined as I like.  How can I receive a service in Dably Queensland if that serivce that I need does not exsist?  I do know under the Disability Care legislation service will need to change the way they deliver many of their supports.  To answer these and many other question is going to take some pretty revoluationary thinking just like the corrgraphar of this dance.  

Access All Areas

The ability of people with disabilities to access all area is a the core of the legislation that underpins the introduction of (NDIS) now known as Disability Care Australia.  As I been sharing Disability Care Australia is designed to do much more than bring needed funding reform to the disability care sector.  While care and support are essential elements is the legislation they are not the focus.   

Rather Disability Care Australia aims to ensure the Human Rights of people with disabilities or access to all areas. Historically people with disabilities, their families and careers have been segregated in Australia. This has meant previously the abilities of those with physical, intellectual, behavioural, neurological and psychological impairments have often been overlooked as we have attempted and failed to meet the needs of a growing population.  

As medical discoveries are made, more people survive the initial critical period where the impairment occurs. Thus the historical life expectancy and predicted outcomes on which traditional social funding systems were founded are no longer applicable.

In Australia it is time to take a more mature look at 'disability' and what it is and what it is not. Broadly speaking disability is a lost of impairment resulting in the reduction of a persons ability to function at standard compacity.  Impairment can be physical, intellectual, sensory, behavioural,neurological, psychological or a combination of one or more of these impairments. A person with disabilities lies somewhere on a continuum between total loss of abilities thought to be less than 2 % of the population with disability and those classified as having no impairment or disability.

So as we begun to have mature discussions around the implementation of (NDIS) Disability Care Australia we need to be clear on two accounts:

1. The definition of disability and varying levels of impairment.
2. and how does that or does that not impact an person's abilities 

As we move away from historical models of 'disability' were these two issues were traditionally inter-winded, we must now begin the road to untie the two and learn to define them clearly for each individual we label as living with a disability. For each person the dot point on the continuum of level of impairment and level of ability will be very different.

       

Historical models of funding have only looked at the first of these continuum(s):- level of impairment. Until now the decision to assign support and how much support has been solely based on impairment levels. Using this model administrators would compare the impairments of all types to define a person living with a serve disabilities. That's a bit like comparing a Granny Smith Apple with a Pink Lady.

Luckily for people with disability and those who share their lives the signing of the Disability Care Australia legislation leaves behind the use of comparison models and funding based on impairment,  what a person can not do.  For we now recognize ability for its true value.  Regardless of the particular ability it still an ability. A person's impairment may only allow very limited ability such as eye movement and breathing. Regardless of their perhaps profound impairments we now must recognize all of the abilities of the person being assessed and ask, given the right supports at the right level what is possible.

Is it possible this person can have a life in the community without being accommodated in a nursing home? Can this person with a profound level of impairment have access to all areas and how can that be achieved. As we learn to ask these new questions this revolutionary system is demanding our answers our time will change as too will our definition of level of impairment. 

Certainly the productivity commission in setting the prematures for the NDIS sort to challenge the limitations and the limiting conditions that have historical lead to the exclusion of people with serve to profound n disabilities and their families for community activities including education, employment, sport, leisure, art and cultural, business, housing and politics. Disability Care Australia is very much geared towards giving people with disabilities and their primary career givers access to all areas, based on their abilities rather than level of impairment.

One tool. that enables us to offer more access to more areas than ever before is the role of advances in technology and the way they allow more people with disabilities to independently communicate with others and move independently about our community. It is our attitudes to these rapidly changing abilities and possibles for people that needs to very quickly take a turn around.

The person who only has physical abilities to breath and move their eyes has a spinal cord injury given the right equipment and support from Disability Care Australia it is possible for this individual even with a profound level of disability to live in their own home, move independently in a wheelchair through breathing, enjoy computer access, communicate through communication aids and gain employment.  A person previously requiring nursing home care is able to full access all areas providing we enable those areas to be accessible. 

Unfortunately community attitudes and ignorance of the possibilities that continue to deny people with disability regardless of the level of reduction of impairment true access.  We are still struggling in tradition common ground such as accommodation, education and retail and now Disability Care Australia on July with begin to challenge the area of employment and justice. We have a lot of public education to do before the fully functioning Disability Care System arrives in 2019.     

Let us stop focusing on what people are not able to do so together we can assist each other to see the possibilities and provide the resources for people with disability reach their potential. Let's enjoy the revolution that gives access to all areas.  

                    

Is your house ready for the induction of (NDIS) Disability Care Australia?

Very few of us would by a home without carrying out a building inspections and checking council mud maps.  We all know that small cracks in the ceiling or walls can be a sign of major structural damage we can see.  We also want to know if the property and house has flooded and how high the water was.  Was it as high as the floor boards or as high as the ceiling? When making major investments for our future we want our eyes wide open to all the risks involved in that investment. We definitely want to know the building is built on firm foundation.

  

However no all investment we make in life have four walls, as we have explored in my pervious posts. Boundaries often don’t come in brick and mortar, these types of investments such as the trust of our children in day care, schools and sporting clubs. We want to know our children are safe. Very few of us would chose to fly with airline with a poor safety record. Many of us are not prepare to make investment in plan tickets with airlines with poor safety records.We can stand round cheering and celebrating the introduction of (NDIS) Disability Care Australian or we can begin to prepare our house, for revonnation.  The way we think about disability care and those with disabilities needs to be challenged. Now, not in 2019 is the time to sand down the walls. However before you reach for the undercoat and spend hours studying the colour charts.  How well do you know your walls? Who painted them last time? Was you or the previous owner?

The federal government has just taken ownership of the keys to Disability Care, but forget everything you thought you understood, take our the old scrubbing brush and start scrubbing away the old foundation of the disability support funding.  On July 1 that system is to be declared out dated, even that way we apply for assistance and are assessed in changing. When I was assessed I was asked what I couldn’t do. How well can you walk? How far can you walk? Can you walk to 10 stairs . . . 15 stair . . . How long can you stand.

These types of questions are more about what we or our family member can’t do.  Whether I can walk a 100 meters unaided, is a useless question if my goal is to represent Australia in power chair ruby. If a person’s identify goals are not associated with walking do we need to ask how far they can walk?

A couple has a 2 year old who has just been diagnosed with CP or an intellectual disability, the Pedicatian suggests a visit to the Disability Care Australian office to check for eligibility for an early intervention program. 

I sorry but when your working with a 2 year old and you tick they can’t sit up, stand up. Talk, feed independently nor are they toilet training, I think you could swap the application form between the parents with the child who has CP (with potentially no intellectual impairment) with the form from the child with Down Syndrome and the could look identical.  Assessments based on deficits are floored.

So open you eye are look more closely at the stains, the water marks and the chips and make you’ll be unlucky enough to find a crack.  Or a birth deficit not pick up, like a heart mummer.  Just because you can’t see a cancer doesn’t mean its not there.

That water mark on the bottom left hand corner do you know how it got there or did you just buy the house.  Let’s pause our assessment of wall # 1 there and step back and look at the wall again.  Now in your mind I want you to seal the cracks or replace paster where you need to.  Once the putty is dry apply the first under coat and step back, now tell me how that wall is different.  Has the expectation for the wall change.  Can you visualised what other options or uses you can have for the wall, may be now you thinking or other colours or may be you’re not sure about the repair job, maybe you want a second opinion. 

Maybe those possibilities you imagined for the revenation underestimated what the house can become. People with disabilities are just like the walls of a house, all to offer when we explore the cracks we see things as irreversible or unrepairable. How many times has a child with a disability or person with who had a stroke succeeded all expectations.

In disability care and support its time to ask what might be possible.  Let’s stop putting people with disabilities in boxes and assuming the child with Down Syndrome will not complete year 12.  At the age of 2 let for now put that in the possibilities box.  Aged two it is possible for a children with Down Syndrome to complete year 12.  What about the child with CP is it possible he or she may never walk, but complete a law degree? Yes! Let’s say at age 2 that is possible.

What about are stoke patient, six weeks after the stroke he or she is regaining the ability to talk. Is it possible this patient might be able to regain something of what their life looked like before the stroke,    

Can you see how by changing the question we ask even though the circumstances haven’t changed, the answers, the attitudes and the possibilities have. Welcome friends to the future we’re about to create for people with disabilities and the families.  A future where the disability does not define what is possible.  Rather when begin to ask what might be possible. Might it be possible for my child to be mainstream school if we develop an early intervention program?  Might he or she be capable of full time employment.  Let us start to ask what is possible?

Yes those crack are forming, yes there are potential risks, yes we might need to go back and to re-sand and plugs holes in the walls and make a plan B.  However Disability Care is not about dead ends any more than its about funding models we know failed! 

Let us reach a point when we’re happy with the wall’s and the potential to protect us.  Let’s together make a choice to take a chance and ask what might be possible for people with disabilities and their families.  Lets us be bold enough to ask questions differently as we meet the needs of the valuable members of our community.

What might our community look like in the future?  Just maybe we’ve never asked the right questions before.  I wonder what else we’ll discover as was exploring and secure the appearing cracks?

Do you still think Disability Care Australia is more of the same?

Premier Campbell Newman signs Queensland up for National Disability Insurance Scheme | The Courier-Mail

What does it mean for us?

Premier Campbell Newman signs Queensland up for National Disability Insurance Scheme | The Courier-Mail:

'via Blog this'

Disability Care Australia comes to Queensland

Taken by Judy Dickson on behalf of ALARA Association. 

Yesterday I was privileged to witness the combination of many years of hard work and determination by people with disabilities, their families and those who care for them.  As Julia Gilard an Campbell  Newman signed the historic agreement between the State Government of Queensland and the Australia Federal Government. 

To people with disability and their families this is about much more than funding to meet their day to day needs.  While by 2019 some additional 50,000 families in Queensland will have their support needs meet for the first time.  The real victory for NDIS campaigners in the revolutionary thinking build this world class system. 

Like landrights for indigenous Australians and women gaining the right to vote, for the first time our leaders have acknowledge our right to the quality of life other Australians enjoy.  The legislation looks specifically at real inclusion for people with disability for the first time.

Its a long road head until the 50 000 Queenslanders who currently have no assistance receive the help they have hounded the Queensland government for decades. But certainly the signing yesterday was caused for celebration.  

While for some its a case of too late, the real work and challenge for service providers is ahead as we make the shift from service provision to a true market place where people are empowered to make choices about their lifestyles.

So to does the challenge of bring about community awareness.  What is disability?  How does it impact the lives of  those affected? What are the true abilities of these people to contribute in real and meaningful ways to our society.  The real challenge for us is  the challenge to long term attitudes towards people like myself who had enough of watching life from sidelines.  Its our time to join in and enjoy all that life has to offer to leave the house!  To go to work or study.  To be creative and use the same innovations we use to create and design the NDIS to create small business and design technologies. 

History in the making as documents are signed 

to allow the Introduction of Disabilities Care Australia. 

             

Plugging Holes in the NDIS

Growing up I remember the tale of a young Dutch boy who placed his finger in a hole of a Dutch dike to save his homeland from being drowned by the sea on the other side of the wall. I assume at the time it was only a small hole that could be plugged by the size of a small child’s finger.  The trouble is the small holes left unchecked and not repaired can grow into larger holes creating a potential disaster.

Boundaries as I was explaining on Tuesday last week are ‘the fences’ or in this case a wall; that protect us from potential harm or abuse.  For clients and workers in the disability sector these are known as polices and procedures. Each of these links back to the laws that are unpinned by the Queensland or Federal Government’s legislation that protect the human rights of people living with significant disabilities and their families and carers.

These are also known as the Disabilities Standards, As we look forward to the introduction of the NDIS or Disability Care Australia, these standards are underpinned by the Human Rights of people with a disability by the United Nations.  In other words polices makers from the federal government down to me as a board member who is responsible for overseeing my organisations polices and procedures are written and abided by are govern by the charter of the UN Human Rights.

None of us truly live independent lives just as I am dependent on the assistance of support workers to meet some of my needs to get out the door for work in the morning, so too are we dependent on others to protect us from harm, neglect or abuse. These are important principles for clients, families, carer’s, guardians and support workers to grasp as we move away from the traditional model’s of service provision to a more open market of service delivery, which will from July 1 this year start to drive the choice of how people with disabilities and families meet their own support needs as the work towards full community participation and economic equality.

The NDIS revolution as set out by the Productivity Commission is designed to do much more than provide the support and equipment needs of people with disabilities and yet in the discussions I’ve been involve in so far; how does the NDIS or Disability Care Australia meet my needs or the needs of my child or clients. As we begin this journey over the next 5 years, this for many the have repetitively been failed by state governments over 5 to 6 decades is right so the first question being asked ‘how can I be sure my needs or the needs of my child/client be meet.   

This is a question the current ‘needs’ based funding has trained us to ask. The governments have failed to meet my/our needs for decades. What makes the new system of Disability Care any different? I have no doubt after reading the legislation under NDIS some people with disabilities and their families are going to be disappointed with what the system provides for them.  The words ‘permanent’, ‘stable’ and ‘serve’ point to uncertainly around the question of eligibility.

However the NDIS is not ‘needs’ driven but ‘goals’ driven, the very premise of disability care is about to be turned on its head and yes, for many of us that is scary. It involves a journey into the unknown and still many holes in the framework in which we will be required to work with in remain unplugged, some of the natural safeguards that protect clients from abuse have been removed.  We can not give people with disabilities the real choices they’re asking for without introducing risks. As we have seen all choices have conquences which lie with the decision maker not law enforcements.

As clients and families take greater control over the futures and services relinquish there traditional guardians roles, the risks become greater. The traditional mechanisms such as workers entitlements, awards wages, worker health and safety regulates, risk management, equipment checks and repairs, and even home modifications may now be the responsibility of the service user rather than the providers.

Not only does the NDIS promise to give people with disabilities greater choices about meeting their needs and lifestyles choices around how to meet those, For example greater choice around accommodation, how to meet their individual accommodation needs but it also allows them a voice about the postcode.  Traditionally those with high needs support have been house to close together for funding reasons.  Now people with disabilities are saying I want to live on the Gold Coast not in Brisbane. Everyone else has the right to make that choice and I want the same opportunity to live where I chose. I don’t want to be govern by where I must access the services to meet the needs associated with my disability.

To enable people with disabilities and the people that support them to determine their own lifestyle choice the NDIS has shifted the goal post. Services will be required to delivery services where the client and families needs to access them rather than require clients to travel. This is what we mean by ‘service delivery must become market driven’.  There no use setting up shop in Alice Springs if no one wants to by your goods.

In its quest to offer people more flexibility in the lifestyle choices, the federal government has responded by introduction flexibility in the way people with disabilities and their families can access the provision and delivery of their needs.

Disability Care Australia will offer three different service models

·       ‘Traditional’ ─ where the family or client will go to a website or shop front that lists all the services that offer to meet their needs and they will choice what suits them and the current goals and lifestyle. For some of these people the delivery of their services will remain the same.  Only who is paying the bill will change.  Others may chose to only change a provider or some delivery services changes to better suit their needs and goals. This is their choice and for many it gives them what they want. However others tell us they want a great say in meeting their needs, so these people may choice . . .

·       ‘The middle ground’ ─ Some where between giving all their funding to a service to provider or providers to meed all the request needs and having no responsibility for the organisational and administration for their funds.  This model has a middle person between them and the service provider that can give assistance and guidance in the areas their not sure on like employment of staff, worker compensational, repairs and maintenances of mobility and communication aids and referrals to professionals such as a speech therapist. The person or organisation will be responsible for this like quarterly reports to the Disability Care Australian office to say you have spent your money how you agreed to spend and not on a family holiday to Fiji or a new play station.

·       ‘Autonomous self-direction’ ─ will be where an agreed amount of money is payed to an individual or family by Disability Care Australia.  That individual then becomes an employer, who directly employs support workers and therapist themselves. Choosing this method of service delivery means, the person or family is responsible for training, safety standards, wages, sick leave, workers compensation, public liberty and meeting industry standards. The people need to write their quarterly reports to the Disability Care Australian office to say you have spent the money how they agreed to spend and not on a tree house of a red luxury car.

Remember the person or persons now making the choices become responsible for the results of those choices.  If you employ a support worker who drives your child to and from school in a car that in not road worthy resulting in a car accident, an absence of a road worthy certificate, results in a default in the insurance payment. You are left with your child has major injuries and you need time off work. No insurance is a result of you as a employer not doing a road worthy on staff cars.  You choosing to cut corners you are left to deal with the results. No service provider to run too.          

We as governments and service providers only have ten fingers. Human rights and the laws that protect them can on plug ten wholes.  If your creating and eleventh or twelfth holes by not having public liability insurance or not enforcing safety procedures the holes allow crack and crack without repairs grow bigger and sooner or later the wall crumbles and there’s no safety net.

I know because in the past I have failed to put putty in the hole before cracks appeared and pay the emotional toll. As the NDIS rolls out and more people make the choice to take direction over their funding, both support workers and clients need to carefully navigate the pot holes in the road.  The third umpire to ensure correct policies and procedures are followed has been removed. However, that’s what equality in.  No one makes my sister get up and get the kids off to school and then drive to work if she sleeps in being self employed she loses sales.

In my next post I might tell you about some of the cracks in the fall that can occur when you don’t put putty in the holes.  

Revolutionary Thinking

As we march towards the introduction of the Disability Care Australian (formally known as the NDIS) we must ask ourselves if we as Australian’s are really mature enough to reorganised the true value of human life.  Are we ready to stand up and shout to the world that every life has equal value regardless of the peoples abilities.

This human rights statement is the driving force behind the NDIS campaign. For people with disabilities its not about the money, but the dream to belong. Sure, we want our basic needs and rights meet.  We are demanding equal standards of living, no one under the age of 60 should be force to live in a nurse home because, that is the only way the tax payer will fund 24 hour care,

For us the realization of the NDIS is about real inclusion for people with disabilities; their families and carers. The fundamentals that drive the NDIS legislation is not a funding reform.  Funding reforms in themselves can only hope to produce more income to support a growing population of people with disabilities.

The Australian Governments decision to introduce the NDIS into parliament is a recognitizies  of the rights of all people with a disability and their families, not just those who can like me voice the needs, desires and goals.  The start of Disability Care Australian on July 1 is not based on needs as various funding systems have done in the past, but the goals of people with disabilities and their families.

Almost universally, these people tells us that their individual goals are linked to their desired for social inclusion.  For many that’s the goal to live in a community of their choice and not to have some government department make that decision based on determine needs and service availability.  Disability Care recognises people with disabilities have the same rights to services regardless of whether the person and/or their families live in Hobart in Tasmania or Lismore in country NSW.  Services and equipment needs to be available where people live not centralized and capitalized in major Australia cities.

However are ordinary Aussies ready to make this fundamental shift in attitude from ‘caring’ for people with disabilities to ‘providing the care and support to enable people with disabilities to fully participate’ in our Australian lifestyle?  Because that ladies and gentlemen is what this piece of legislation demands.

After a week of debate, argument and opinion polls by television and radio programs, I’m not sure we in Australia have that type of maturity, although I hope we find it soon.  When we have the CEO of one of the finest retail companies in Australian claiming an increase in the medicare levy of 0.5% with hurt his companies bottom-line. Then it is plausible to draw conclusions about current attitudes to those with disabilities and their ability to full engaged in Australian society. We are neither seen as taxpayers nor consumers.

The look on the sales assistance face said it all, “Why are you letting her look at a $200 pair of shoes.” I am just a poor disable girl about to earn $55 hour. I definitely can’t afford to buy those shoes, nor would I appreciate there value.  Stereotypes are a strongly held as ever and its going to take more than the Prime Minster signature on a whitepaper to change this ingrained attitude that all people with CP have intellectual disabilities.  Poor thing stuck in a retail job at 55 because she was able to get a degree like me.  I really do feel sorry of these people without degrees and ability to challenge social norms.

I was not the only one on the receiving end of this attitude yesterday, as I sort out a lifestyle our Prime Minister states we are entitle too yesterday.  My friend and fellow top 200 Leaders with a disabilities in Australia Maralene encounter the same.  Poor dear with CP busking with a jumping castles (Do you know how much those thing costs to run an hour?)  Poor dear lets give her 10 cents.  Bloody hell that doesn’t get the thing in the truck let alone the fuel – a total insult to this future leader of our country.

These are the attitudes that stand in the way of the best chance to revolutionised disability care since federation!