As a support coordinator, we know how important it is to you to assist your participants to get the most out of their NDIS plan therapy budget. Below we outline five things you might like to consider when looking for a therapy provider that we believe will help do just that.

Consider choosing a therapy provider:

1. Who is focused on capacity building.

A provider who is focused on building the capacity of your participant and their support people to need the support of the therapist less and less as time goes on is going to allow future budget to be utilised elsewhere i.e., they might suggest the need for 20 hours of funding this year but then 10 hours next year (rather than 20 hours again next year). Ask the provider what their approach to capacity building looks like and what their experience in training other people is. It’s also important to ensure that the therapist has the skills to train others to be both safe and effective in their support of the participant so you should also include a question to ask whether they use risk assessment and mitigation to confirm that the provider has processes and practices in place that ensure the safety of all who are involved.

2. With disability expertise.

A provider with disability training and expertise knows the evidence-base required to support a participant to achieve their goal as quickly and efficiently as possible. Their intervention prescription is going to be specifically targeted and will therefore require less time, less sessions and therefore less funding to get there. Look for a company who have provided disability-specific therapy services for a minimum number of years that you feel comfortable with (ideally longer than the time that the NDIS as a scheme has existed for) and ask them more about the clinical supervision and professional development that occurs in-house.

3. Who is transparent with their planned funding use.

Have you ever received communication from a provider that they’ve run out of funding faster than expected and when you review their use of that funding, you’ve been disappointed by the ‘wastage’ and because the client has barely started to work towards their goals? Choice and control means that all provider’s planned use of funding should be communicated clearly to all relevant parties prior to them utilising it. Just keep in mind that a therapist will need to assess the participant before making recommendations, so this means receiving a treatment plan from them after the initial assessment but before any other services proceed.

4. Who has a track record of writing exceptional NDIS reports.

We all know that it can sometimes be difficult to find a therapy provider who innately understands the NDIS reasonable and necessary criteria and how to respond to it effectively in their report to meet the burden of proof required to have funding recommendations approved. The outcome of NDIS reports has a significant impact on the amount of funding that a participant has access to and it absolutely contributes to their ability to achieve their goals. Therefore, it is crucial that your participant’s chosen therapy provider can demonstrate an exceptional track record of report writing. How often do they see participants getting exactly what they’ve asked for in their report? How often are they able to see clients in multiple consecutive plans? Do they have a report writing template that outlines the evidence-based benefits of their services for that primary disability? Do they have a report writing quality assurance process? These are all potential questions that could be asked of the therapy provider to gain a better understanding of their NDIS report writing skills.

5. Who is mobile but who doesn’t charge for travel.

Your participant may have decided that they’d prefer their therapy provider to come to them; perhaps because they don’t feel comfortable attending a therapy or clinic space, perhaps because they’d feel more comfortable in an environment of their choice. The problem with that is that the budget for travel comes directly out of the participant’s therapy budget, resulting in less therapy! This might mean you are on the lookout for a provider who is able to provide mobile services without a travel charge – that way the client can be seen in the community and in an environment they feel most comfortable in but not at the expense of their therapy budget – getting more out of their budget!

Just as everyone is unique, so is their therapy budget! We hope that we’ve been able to give you some ideas so that you can link your participants with therapy providers who are going to meet their needs, support their choice and control and assist them to achieve their NDIS goals. Check out more information on Active Ability through Kismet and start connecting with therapy providers today.

Written by Kara Foscholo and Amanda Semaan, Directors at Active Ability