How to Choose the Right NDIS Provider
Choosing the right NDIS provider is crucial to get the proper support you need. Read on to see what to look for to get the best NDIS provider for you.
In this guide:
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is Australia’s first national program for people with disability. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 1 in 6 people in Australia have a disability and NDIS aims to provide more than $22 billion a year to nearly half a million Australians who are eligible for the program across all states and territories.
With the goal of giving support to people with psychosocial, cognitive, sensory, intellectual, and physical disability, NDIS provides information and connections to people with disability to services in their communities including doctors, support groups, sporting clubs, schools, libraries, and more.
To accomplish this, NDIS has partnered up with registered providers, carefully screened by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, that can deliver the support needed by NDIS participants. All NDIS providers meet the strict requirements of NDIS Practice Standards to ensure participants can trust their services or products.
The first step to finding the right NDIS provider for you is to make sure that they are officially registered to the program. The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) sets forth requirements for all approved NDIS service providers to ensure quality service and products. All NDIS workers must be NDIA-approved to provide care. Employees also have to show they are qualified and experienced and that they will use proper evidence-based procedures.
Additional measures an NDIS service provider must take for approval include:
Completing a suitability assessment
Undergoing quality audits
Providing a complaint and resolution system
You can always find approved providers in your area by contacting the NDIA. Once you've compiled a preliminary list, it's time to investigate each provider further.
Providers should have a website that lists the plans they support and the services they offer. Can't find your top choice provider's webpage? You can also arrange a face-to-face or phone meeting to discuss their services and plan options before you sign up.
Otherwise, here are the top factors to consider when choosing the best service provider for your needs:
Your NDIS provider should have a team of professionals with the right set of qualifications and expertise to be able to provide intervention strategies backed up by research and clinical evidence. They should adhere to the National Guidelines at all times.
A good service provider should define the participant's and their family's goals. They should also provide a strategic roadmap of how their NDIS products can help achieve those goals by identifying the skills needed by you and your family. Good NDIS providers try to improve daily life rather than special skills. This means supporting independence, and helping improve home and social skills to foster a sense of belonging with the community.
A great NDIS provider doesn't just focus on the participant alone. They also heavily consider the person's social networks, family and friends. Often, this comes in the form of education. Great NDIS providers will work with the participants' families and loved ones to help develop their skills and abilities. This strategy can help build empathy, improve outcomes, and provide more realistic expectations.
What sets the best NDIS service providers apart from merely great ones? The ability to be inclusive and culturally sensitive is a skill you just can't teach. That's why Tunstall employs staff who are naturally inclined toward empathy and respect.
Our NDIS representatives respect your lived experience and understand how to demonstrate that respect by providing tailored solutions and services.
At Tunstall, we help a whole range of people in the disability sector from participants to carers. Our mission is to provide people with solutions that enable them to live their life on their terms. We want our clients to feel safe and supported while remaining as independent as possible, making us the perfect NDIS. The NDIS aims to help participants enhance their independence, something Tunstall has been doing for over 18 years in Australia.
We are passionate about supporting our clients in every way we can. This is the reason why we became an NDIS registered provider. We want our clients to benefit from our products and services that help them achieve their goals.
The NDIS requires support to be reasonable and necessary for the participant to receive funding. The main requirements to be considered reasonable and necessary is that it helps the participant: pursue their goals, objectives and aspirations, increase their independence, increase community and workplace participation, and develop their capacity to actively take part in the community.
Tunstall has a range of products that help our clients do all these things every day. For a full list of our products and services, visit our products page.
If you have any more questions regarding the role of Tunstall as an NDIS provider, set up a phone appointment with a consultant.
Tunstall is a trusted NDIS service provider and we are vetted by the NDIA. With us, you can acquire Connected Healthcare solutions such as personal alarms and fall detectors through NDIS.
Are you searching for an NDIS service provider that ticks all your boxes? Request a quote today to learn if our NDIS services are right for you or your loved one!
Keep reading: How to Develop Your Own NDIS plan