In November, the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) made a few changes to the Practice Standards and Quality Indicators. We’ve broken them down for you below.
There are now 3 new Practice Standards. These are:
Came into effect: 13 December 2021
Service providers who provide mealtime support to participants—that need assistance to manage mealtimes—fall under this standard.
It aims to ensure that participants receive safe and nutritious meals, which are to be made in a safe and appropriate environment and cater to each individual’s dietary needs, including textures of meals.
Came into effect: 15 November 2021
While not under the 4 core Practice Standards, Severe Dysphagia Management appears in Schedule 2 – Module 1: High Intensity Daily Personal Activities.
It applies to service providers that are approved to provide support to participants in daily personal activities, with a focus on dysphagia management.
Dysphagia is the medical term for swallowing difficulties and, therefore, this standard aims to ensure providers are supporting each participant appropriately. This means ensuring the support is specific and relevant to each individual.
Comes into effect: 24 January 2022
This standard aims to improve the health, safety, and well-being of participants. Service providers are required to prepare for, prevent, manage, and respond to emergency disaster situations.
Under this Quality Indicator, providers must demonstrate holistic planning around emergencies and disasters, which covers how they will minimise risks and ensure continuity of supports to the participants.
There are also new and amended Quality Indicators for some of the other Practice Standards. These include:
Core Standard/Modules
Practice Standard
1: Rights and Responsibilities
2: Provider Governance and Operational Management
3: Provision of Supports
4: Provision of Supports Environment
Module 3: Early Childhood Supports
Verification module
lf you are a new applicant or are re-registering as an NDIS Provider, the above applies to you as these came into effect on 15 November 2021.
If you applied before 15 November 2021 but have not been assessed by an auditor, the new Practice Standards and Quality Indicators apply to you.
Existing and registered providers and mid-term audits
If your mid-term audit is carried out after 15 November 2021, the new Practice Standards and Quality Indicators apply to you. However, this depends on whether the audits will be carried out after the date the new standards come into effect.
What about transitioned providers?
These new standards do not apply to transitioned providers unless they submit a renewal application.
etrainu is in the process of updating our Workforce Essentials eLibrary, which provides disability awareness training, to include courses that align with the new practice standards and quality indicators.
We've released modules on mealtime management and dysphagia to our Workforce Essentials and Complex Care customers. The emergency management module will be released imminently.
To read more about the changes to the NDIS Practice Standards, click here.
For the updated version of the NDIS Practice Standards (at the time of writing), read it here.
etrainu is excited to announce that we will be renewing our sponsorship of the Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA) Inclusive Beaches Equipment Program.
If you’re a disability services provider looking to register with the NDIS, you may have a lot of questions. What is the process? What are the benefits? How much are the costs?
Following the results from the 2023 NDIS Review, all disability service providers will now be required to register with the NDIS. So, how do you become an NDIS-registered service provider? We’ve broken it down for you in five simple steps.