As an NDIS participant, you must require a lot of support from your service providers and support workers to reach your goals and become independent. The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is a support program that aims to help participants lead independent lives. Life is tough for people with significant or permanent impairment, and they require a certain level of support to live their lives to the fullest. NDIS provides that support according to each participant’s need.
NDIS and Nursing Services
NDIS funds a wide variety of support services for its participants. Each participant gets a personalized plan, including the support they require to become independent. Nursing care is one of the support that NDIS funds for the participants. It allows them to receive treatment in the comfort of their home while a healthcare professional comes to them and monitors their condition. Your service provider can help you connect with professional and experienced nurses who have worked with similar cases in the past. Their expertise helps manage your health better. In order to be eligible for this support, you need to show you require this support and that it’s directly related to your disability. It is important to remember that NDIS doesn’t fund anything unrelated to your goals and disability, so make sure to defend your request.
You can start receiving this support once you get NDIS nursing services added to your plan. However, before that, you will need to discuss your needs with your service provider. It is vital to determine what type of services to wish to receive with nursing care so your service provider can recommend nurses that have the expertise for it. This type of support service is even more important if you live in a remote area in Australia. Since NDIS community nursing allows you to have proper treatment in community settings, many participants find it helpful to attend these events and get treated. Community nurses are not only responsible for treating patients, but they are also supposed to educate them about different diseases and disabilities.
NDIS nursing services require your nurse to work closely with your healthcare professionals and discuss your health with them frequently. These nurses are also responsible for reporting to your doctor if there’s a change in symptoms. NDIS nurses usually offer all types of general medical assistance, but in some complex, they also provide help with the following:
- Continence management
- Diabetes management
- Managing your medication
- Wound management
- Catheter care
They also help you learn how to teach medical equipment. Some NDIS participants have the funding for assistive technology in their plan, which allows them to have medical equipment; however, it is essential to know the proper use of them, and NDIS nurses help you with it. They can also provide nutritional advice and support if participants need it.
What if my NDIS Plan Doesn’t Have Nursing Services?
The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) only funds the support that is considered reasonable and necessary for the participants. Once you get registered with NDIS, the agency sets up a meeting to discuss your goals and needs to create an effective NDIS plan for you. You can mention all your requirements and expectations with the NDIS and share your short-term and long-term goals with the agency so they can determine which level of support is right for you. If NDIA considers nursing services important according to your needs, they will add support to your NDIS plan. However, if it is not considered reasonable and necessary, you won’t be able to get the funds for it.
If you are already a participant but don’t have NDIS community nursing in your plan, you can request it in your next plan review meeting. However, make sure to defend your request because if you fail to prove how this support is directly related to your disability and goals, you won’t be able to get it funded. NDIA has criteria for funding support for participants, and according to it, the support in your NDIS plan should be directly related to your disability. So make sure you think hard before requesting to add nursing services to your plan. NDIS also won’t fund the nursing services that:
- Are not required to be delivered by a qualified nurse.
- Are not added to Capacity-Building Support, which means that they don’t contribute to your independence and skills.
- It can be funded under the state healthcare system.
If your required nursing services don’t fall into these scenarios and are related to your goals and disability, you can request the NDIA to fund them.
Conclusion
NDIS nursing services have many benefits for the participants, but unfortunately, everyone doesn’t get the funding for this support in their NDIS plan. You need to have a certain level of need to be able to get this support from a registered nurse. You can discuss your needs with your service provider as well to understand your needs. EnableU is a registered service provider with years of experience working with NDIS service providers and its participants. They provide compassionate care to their clients and work with dedication to help the participants become independent. They can help you find the right nurse for your required nursing services. If you have the funds for NDIS nursing services in your plan, reach out to them and let their support workers help you reach your goals more effectively.