IDA Magazine Vol 40 Iss 3 (Sep 2019)

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PRESIDENT’S REPORT As I write this presidents report, I receive notification that a letter sent by ASID to the Australian Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability has been received. In writing to the Royal Commission, we sought to raise the issue of people with intellectual disability and their experience of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. We know that 60% of people accessing the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) have an intellectual disability. It is reasonable then to assume that if adequate supports are put in place, then a significant portion of people participating in the Royal Commission will be people with intellectual disability. As an organisation grounded in research to practice, we are acutely aware that there is a lack of robust data as to the incidences of abuse for people with intellectual disability. However, from what is available, we know that people with intellectual disability are disproportionally represented among victims. We also know that people with intellectual disability face additional challenges to disclosure. This is due to many factors including communication skills and often dependent relationships with service providers or family members. ASID is advocating for the Royal Commission to ensure that the issues confronting people with all levels of intellectual disability are considered. This should include provision of appropriate preparatory support for individual to participate in the Commission as well as emotional support during and post participation. Once the investigation phase is complete, the Royal Commission will be tasked with crafting a future where people with disability experience a quality of life not marred by violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. ASID is calling on the Royal Commission to collate the current body of evidence about good quality support, culture and the factors that influence these. We are also advocating for additional research to be commissioned that addresses identified research gaps, particularly around support in the family setting and underrepresented groups. To keep the conversation alive, we are planning a symposium on the topic at our annual Australasian conference ‘The Journey to a Good Life, Taking Control’. The conference is in Adelaide from the 6th – 8th November. We have invited the Royal Commission to make representation at the symposium and are awaiting a response. I invite you to join us in Adelaide, your voice is invaluable to this discussion. For more information www.asidconference.com.au, early bird rates are ending soon. Laura Hogan 2019 ASID President president@asid.asn.au 4 www.asid.asn.au
NDIS POSITIVE OUTCOMES Meg Irwin, Mary Burke NDIS Funding – Good but not sufficient. What more did it take for a woman with intellectual disability to achieve positive outcomes? NDIS funding aims to provide “reasonable and necessary supports” for individuals with disability to have an “ordinary life”. In the Loddon Region, NDIS funding became available for individuals in May 2017, and replaced and removed the State government funding previously available to individuals, as well as the “block funding” available to support services. Melissa consented for us to share her story. She has now received NDIS funding for two years. In that period, she has become more independent communicating and has expanded her social network. We look at what may have made that happen. Melissa (not her real name), is a middle-aged woman with intellectual disability married to a man who also has an intellectual disability. They live in a home where Golden City Support Services (GCSS) uses a “Lead Tenant” model of support. When NDIS began to operate in Loddon in 2017, the large Day Service Melissa attended closed. It fell to other disability funded services in the region to fill the gap. Until that time, GCSS had not delivered ‘Day Services’, but began to extend its activities to meet this new community need. It planned and now provides an innovative service, “Creative Links”, using arts and engaging peoples’ creativity to identify their interests and then be supported to pursue them in mainstream environments. Individuals have been supported to join art courses, volunteer in aged care facilities, etc. People use their NDIS individual funding to access the service. Melissa began to attend Creative Links when her Day Service closed. Meg, an author of this article, works in the Southern Loddon Mallee Regional Communication Service (RCS) auspiced by Bendigo Health, funded by the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services, as part of the of the Communication Access Network. The RCS has trained and supported a network of Disability Support Workers from the various disability organizations in the region in advanced communication support skills since 2006. The trained Disability Support Workers champion effective communication for the people they support, and mentor other workers in their organization. Mary, the other author of this article, received this training through the RCS. She is also the Lead Worker in Creative Links. In her work with Melissa, Mary focused on getting to know Melissa well, observing her communication closely, and, providing just enough support for Melissa to interact successfully with her peers and others involved in Creative Links. Vol 40, Issue 3, September 2019 5
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IDA Magazine Vol 40 Iss 3 (Sep 2019)

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