Productivity Commission’s Draft Report on Disability Care & Support (NDIS & NIIS)

I read the Productivity Commission’s Draft Report on Disability Care & Support (NDIS & NIIS) and felt it was well researched and identified well with the issues. There were some interesting points:

Page 23 “The Commission has raised the possibility of an entirely new model for housing for people with long-term disability, based on ‘cashing out’ the costs of public housing and specialised accommodation. People could then decide where they might live and what type of dwelling they might like. They (and their families) would be able to add their own finances to any housing decision. This model would require cooperation with state and territory governments.”

Couldn’t find further explanation of this but sounds interesting - particulary for parents who want to club together and purchase a house for their children???

Page 39 “The Commission is sceptical of imposing any additional requirements for credentials and training of the disability services workforce. In particular, there should be no minimum training requirement to work as a personal support worker. These support workers are the most important group in that workforce, and the essential skills they bring — empathy, a capacity for listening and social skills — are intangible and not easily created through training. Moreover, the most important ‘training’ of workers is often by the person with a disability and their families. (It should also be emphasised that the overwhelming current source of care is unpaid and usually untrained family carers, who are usually preferred by people with a disability.)”

I agree all the training in the world will not change a person who has the wrong motivations for the job. I’m also impressed that they believe the person with a disability and their families is an important part of the “training”

Page 63 Australian governments should ensure that, across all jurisdictions, police check arrangements for paid workers providing services to people with a disability:

• apply only in cases where both the person with a disability is vulnerable AND the risks associated with delivery of services are sufficiently high

• not include disclosure of crimes covered by spent convictions legislation

Am concerned that people with a criminal record could be left to work alone with people who are vulnerable, I believe a criminal record (whether spent or not) should exclude employment in this field.