June 2020 Newsletter
COVID-19 Stage 2 Unlimited travel in Queensland Group activities up to 20 people
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Newsletter Editor Notes Hi everyone, This month has already seen some major changes, events and improvements as we see ourselves slowly moving from the strict COVID-19 restrictions to a relaxation in respect to reopening some businesses, business activities and our community. Notwithstanding these positives there remain some concerning, confusing and double standards shown by our State Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. The Queensland borders remain closed yet an individual can fly from Melbourne to attend a protest rally and be tested positive to COVID-19 but didn’t have to self -isolate for 14 days before attending the rally. The State Government also denies that the border closure is creating financial hardship for business. A wedding is restricted to 20 people, community sporting events have limits of 20 spectators per field and our local member can be fined $ thousands for meeting with his neighbours on the street, yet a very large number of people can attend a protest march for Black Lives Matter and there is not a fine in sight.
In This Issue 3 Michael Burge AM 4 NDIS Updates 5 Plan Management Going...Gone 6 COVID-19 Training 7 Peaceful Humans Inc.
And what about the wonderland world of the USA!
8 NDIS Cost Model
President Trump announces that he will stop funding the World Health Organisation as he believes that they are secretly working for the Chinese and then he suggested that ingesting disinfectant might kill the virus: "Is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside or almost a cleaning?”
9 Queens Park Market reopens
Bring on the footy and the crowds of supporters!
16 What’s Happening at BigDog
10 Toowoomba Community Centre
11 Rockhampton Group Centre 12 Safety Matters 15 Admin Updates 16 June Events
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Michael Burge Michael Burge awarded AM My good friend and mental health advocate Michael (Mick) Burge, who was previously awarded an OAM in 2014, has now been recognised a second time for his service to community mental health, advocacy and education. In the Queen’s Birthday Awards. "I couldn't believe it at first, it's an incredible honour and very, very humbling," Mick said. "I see this as recognition for what volunteers do." Michael said he became interested in volunteering from a young age. "I grew up in a low-socio-economic area with my grandmother - that's where it all started," he said. "She was on the pension and we couldn't afford to buy clothes and food a lot. "There were volunteers that would come around with a food parcel once a month, and I don't think they'll ever know the difference they made - it felt like Christmas when they came." He later joined the military. "I have to thank the military for inspiring me to help other people too - because it was there I saw many people suffering from anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder," he said. "We all had to hide it, because the stigma and discrimination was terrible." His interest in mental health advocacy grew at the end of his military service as he started volunteering at the RSL and veteran affairs. "I wanted to help these people, I said this is what I want to do when I get out of the military," he said. "I saw a job advertised for a consumer advo-
cate for the Toowoomba Mental Health Services and I was out of there - I have been doing it ever since. "I love working with volunteers as they don't do it for the money or to boost their status, they volunteer because it's the right thing to do." Michael, who has been involved in many mental health advocacy groups over the years, said his appointment to the World Federation for Mental Health board in 2017 was a highlight. He has since been made vice president for Program Development in the Oceania region. "I have heard that things are better now than when I was serving but I have also heard that stigma and discrimination towards people who open up about their mental health problems is still occurring," he said. "I want to encourage people with mental health issues to seek help and not suffer in silence." 3
Updates Annual Price Review Recommendations from the Annual Price Review to determine 2020‒21 price controls and market settings are reflected in changes to the NDIS Price Guide 2020–21.
Cancellation Rules From 1st July 2020, the NDIA will retain the cancellation rule regarding claiming 100% rather than 90%, introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This means providers can claim 100% of the agreed support price for a cancellation at short notice. This change has been made to cover the costs incurred by a provider if a participant has cancelled at short notice, or does not show up.
Establishment Fees More providers will be eligible to charge an establishment fee to assist with one-off costs such as assessing a participant's needs, creating a service agreement with the participant and setting up service bookings within the NDIA system. Before 1st July 2020 only providers registered for 0107 Daily Personal Activities could claim establishment fees and the fee was based on a flat fee structure.
Group-based Supports The pricing arrangements for group-based supports will be changed so providers will no longer have to claim for service delivery on a worker to participant ratio. Supports can be claimed against the appropri4
ate 1:1 support item, reducing significant provider administrative burden. Providers will be able to accurately apportion time spent with a group and among the members of that group. Providers can claim for non-face-to-face supports rather than having an allowance for nonface-to-face supports built into the price limit.
Capital Centre-based Costs From 1st July 2020 there is a new way to claim for centre-based group supports with the introduction a number of new line items to claim capital centre costs. This is for providers delivering group-based supports in a centre, so providers can claim a capital allowance for each participant, where appropriate, in addition to the cost of the support worker. This acknowledges capital costs such as asset maintenance and purpose built refurbishments to centres. A capital allowance was formerly within the price limit and will now be a separate line item.
Provider Travel While these items are not price-controlled, the NDIS Price Guide 2020–21 effective 1st July 2020 outlines the reasonable level of these non-labour costs that participants and providers can use to discuss and agree on charges. These include: • up to $0.85 a kilometre for a vehicle that is not modified for accessibility; and • other forms of transport or associated costs up to the full amount, such as road tolls or parking.
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Going...Gone Real Time Claims Sara Gingold DSC 4th June 2020 For months, there have been rumours that the NDIA has plans in the works to develop a real time claims and direct payments program. Up until now there has not been a lot of publicly available information about the program’s progress or function. But a tender recently released changes all that and included some confusing (and frankly concerning) comments about how the platform may impact the future of plan management. There is now some understanding about what the Agency envisions for the program, and what it might mean for the sector. The stated aim is to facilitate a “simple, consistent, automated claims and payments process” between the provider and NDIA, regardless of the person’s plan management type. Which, I think we can all agree, would not be a bad thing.
All of these problems are likely to increase as the Scheme grows. In the six months leading up to December 2019, 17.6 million claims were processed. That is compared to 4.5 million in the 12 months leading up to 30th June 2017. The idea of an automated payments process is not without precedent. Medicare uses one, as do private health insurers and, more controversially, there is the Centrelink cashless card. An overarching question that goes unanswered is what this program will mean for the future of plan management and the tender really sends out mixed signals here. On one hand, plan managers are listed throughout the document as a possible actors in the payment process, as outlined in a few of the features above. However, one of the stated benefits of the program is that it will “eliminate the need for Plan managers and Participants to be financial intermediaries”. This is said to be to reduce the time between service provision and payment.
Another important question is how the payments process will work with unregistered providers. There is not a lot of precedent here. Centrelink’s Cashless Debit Card can only be The amount of manual work for participants, used at particular shops (indeed that is the whole point of it). Medicare Easyclaim is only providers and the NDIA available to doctors, specialists, dentists and The length of time between the support be- allied health professionals. ing delivered and the payment received The success of this program is really dependIssues with payment correctness, payment ent on what processes, training and equipment unregistered providers will need to receive payintegrity and payment fraud ments. For some businesses, it will not be Lack of data collected on supports provided worth their while to put any processes in place to participants because they only cater to a small number of NDIS Participants.
It’s no secret that the current NDIS payments process is far from perfect. The tender identifies a number of existing problems, including: • • • •
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Training Infection Control Training Previously we recommended that all employees should undertake the free training Supporting People to Stay Infection Free available on the Disability (DSC) website and although this is a great resource DSC no longer issue a certificate upon the completion of this course. Other training on the site is available to view for free but costs $55.00 to sign up to the Certificate Pathway to gain certificates on all 7 courses.
Australian Government Department of Health Training The Department of Health has partnered with Aspen Medical who has developed free COVID-19 training with a certificate that can be downloaded for each course. • https://covid-19training.gov.au/dashboard/ • You will be required to complete the elearning course • Please enrol into the COVID 19 - Infection Control Training course and then click on launch to start the e-learning course
• You can always log back into your profile and redo the training at any time and reprint your Acknowledgement of Completion • You will receive notifications when there are updates to the training If you have any technical questions relating to the training portal please email support@covid -19training.gov.au Google Chrome is the preferred web browser for this application On successful completion of the COVID-19 Infection Control Training course a reference guide built on the eLearning content will become available for download. If you have recently completed a course and your certificate has not appeared, please refresh the page.
Other Available Training The list below is some of the free eLearning courses you may decide to undertake. COVID-19 Aged Care Modules • Personal Safety • Families and Visitors—Residential Care
• You might have to allow pop-ups on your computer when you do the course for the first time.
• Families and Visitors—In home care
• Once you allow the pop-up, you can launch the e-learning
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
• Please take your time reading through the content and complete the quiz at the end
• Cleaning
• Once you completed the quiz you can print an Acknowledgment of Completion by clicking the print acknowledgement button in the completed training section 6
• COVID-19 and Aged Care • Outbreak Management Procedures • Laundry • If you suspect a person has COVID-19 • Supporting Older Australians-Residential • Supporting Older Australians-In-Home
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Humans Inc BigDog sincerely thanks you… PEACE Inc. prides itself on the success of their groups, which provide the backbone for Community Engagement. PEACE Inc. runs a variety of free community groups such as: “Coffee and Conversation” which are gatherings at local cafés and homes; “Woolly Warriors” which is a group of volunteers who knit for the homeless, also providing woollen items for local hospitals and trauma teddies for children and “Cooking Together” where we all learn a multicultural dish and then serve it to the homeless. PEACE Inc. also runs the Language Therapy Group that aims to provide holistic English and therapy classes for women. Woolly Warriors
Members of the Toowoomba region who love to knit and crochet or would like to learn, are welcome to join our PEACE Inc. Woolly Warriors group on the first Tuesday of every month at the meeting rooms in the Toowoomba City Library from 11.00am to 1.00pm. Tea and Coffee is provided. A gold coin donation is requested to assist with room hire. The more warriors who join, the more we can give. PEACE Inc. Woolly Warriors is open for anyone who wants to give back to our community, laugh, make new friends and learn new skills. We knit and crochet beanies, scarves, mittens, blankets and comforters to make up hampers for local Charities, Hospitals and Service Providers. Cooking Together PEACE, with the Base Services offer a unique Cooking Together experience. We learn how to cook an International dish which
is then given to the homeless people who attend the Base Soup Kitchen in Neil Street, Toowoomba. PEACE Cooking Together is currently on hold as we search for a bigger cooking facility to cater for the increasing amount of volunteers that we've received for this group. Women’s Social Group Many women in today’s society feel isolated once their children go back to school and their partners head off to work. Maybe you have just moved to our community and wish to meet new friends and experience everything our local region has to offer. Are you an empty -nester, retired, or just plain bored? Maybe you suffer anxiety or have recently left a relationship? To assist in minimising loneliness and enhance community engagement within the women of our area, PEACE Women’s Social Group helps you form friendships by being ‘social’, be it going to the movies, a reading group, having a cuppa, going shopping, going to the theatre, participating in a drawing or yoga class or helping a charity. This group is for all women
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NEWS NDIS Cost Model for Disability Support Workers The purpose of this document is to set out the Cost Model (CM) that the NDIA uses to inform its pricing decisions for those supports delivered by Disability Support Workers (DSWs) on which it imposes price limits.
Industrial Award The national award for DSWs is the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010.
Shift Loadings These are in line with the SCHADS Award and are applied to all DSWs and supervisors in the CM. In line with SCHADS Award, the CM also provides a 17.5% loading for annual leave to compensate workers for the shifts they would have otherwise taken.
Days Worked versus Days Paid The CM recognises that a permanent worker works on 220 days a year, but is also paid for: • 20 days of annual leave and 10 days of public holidays; • Up to 10 days of personal leave – the CM assumes all workers utilise all of their personal leave entitlement each year; • 4⅓ days of long service leave (if they have qualifying service) – the CM assumes 18% of permanent workers and 10% of casual workers qualify for long service leave. Salary On-costs The CM recognises that providers incur other costs related to the salaries, including: 8
• Superannuation at the statutory 9.5% of base salary, including leave; and • Workers compensation insurance at 3% of base salary, including leave, which is higher than the national average for the Health and Community Services Sector of 1.5%. The CM does not provide for payroll tax which BigDog has to pay in addition to the above.
Supervision Costs The CM recognises that DSWs require support and supervision and assumes that supervisors have the same shift loadings, leave entitlements and salary on-costs as the workers they manage, and that higher skilled workers require higher skilled supervisors. The CM also assumes a span of control (ratio of workers per supervisor) of 11 to 1.
Permanent versus Casual Workers Casual loadings and the other costs detailed above increase the costs per billable hour of employing a Standard DSW on a weekday by 49.5% over the base salary rate.
Overheads The CM assumes that corporate overheads are 10.5% of direct costs. Overhead costs together with the costs discussed above increase the costs of employing a permanent Standard DSW on a weekday by 79.6% over the base salary rate.
Margins The CM currently assumes a 2% margin on other costs. This equates to a rate of return of 8% against working capital equivalent to three month’s wages and entitlements. It’s not simple running a business! Editor
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Partnerships The Markets are back on Sunday 21st June the Queen’s Park Market is back on following weeks of closure due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Although there will be some restrictions that will apply, including social distancing of 1.5 metres and sanitary hand washing, we are expecting a large number of stall -holders an a bumper crowd looking for bargains and locally made products and produce. Come and join BigDog, WhatsUp in Disability and Boomerang Bags and help to raise funds to support the WhatsUp in Disability Magazine. 8am to 1pm 3rd Sunday every month Bottom Oval Hume Street Toowoomba
Supporting WhatsUp in Disability
May/Jun Magazine WhatsUp in Disability Stories in this issue include: • Brad’s Magical rebound in life • Coronavirus • 2020 Toowoomba Councilors • At home with technology To obtain a copy of WhatsUp in Disability magazine or to be a sponsor, please contact WhatsUp via:
• NDIS Updates
Office
11-15 Alexander Street, Toowoomba
• Martin Hoffman NDIA CEO
admin@whatsupindisability.org
Online
www.whatsupindisability.org
• Disability Response Plan
Steven Paull President 9
Centre-based Group Activities We are very pleased to be able to re-open our group centres for up to 20 people at any one time. With 120 square metres available in the main room we can accommodate up to 30 people while comfortably maintaining a 4 square metre social distancing space. All visitors to the centre will need to sanitise their hands and have their temperature taken and recorded on the sign-in sheet. People with a temperature of 37.8°c. Great news that 10 pin bowling is back, we will be the first group to kick off this reopening and everyone is excited by the promise to be able to bowl again.
The new sun shade installed by Bob Power Canvas and new fence built by Steve Asgill and our yard maintenance team. We are waiting on the replacement guttering through Council and the external painting due to be completed this month. Looking good!
BigDog Day Service Toowoomba
Paul Myatt Community Centre 11-15 Alexander Street North Toowoomba 4350 Coordinator Sharon Price Phone: 4512 6020 dayservice@bigdogsupport.com.au 10
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New Community Centre We are pleased to announce that we have just purchased a commercial building at 170 East Street Rockhampton that we will be updating to accommodate our group activities, administration offices and short-term accommodation. This well located Inner City brick building with richly polished timber floors and excellent paint work has excellent presentation. This Commercial Property has a Frontage of 10 meters to East Street, a Frontage of 50 meters to Derby Street and a frontage of 10 meters to East Lane. The ornate external brick features complement this cultural hub of Rockhampton and this building is adjacent to land mark buildings such as The Walter Reid Cultural Centre and the iconic Headrick’s Buildings. This Building has been the home of Manderson's Dance and Fitness Centre for many years and features large open plan dance floor area, a large open plan dining area both with richly polished timber floors, a bar area, a commercial kitchen, 2 separate offices, 2 male toilets, 2 female toilets, a disabled toilet and a shower. Manderson’s Dance will be staying on providing dancing lessons as well as a number of specialised dancing sessions for people with disability and wheelchair dancing sessions. The caretakers quarters will be updated and converted to modern respite accommodation standards. There is also plenty of parking spaces, the city library is only a block away, Fitzroy River walk a block away and an indoor swimming pool and Gym is on the opposite corner.
BigDog Day Service Rockhampton
206 Murray Street, Allenstown, Rockhampton 4701 Coordinator Betty Cowan Phone: 4573 4611 ssmith@bigdogsupport.com.au sheit@bigdogsupport.com.au 11
Risk Assessments Types of Assessments we do
Smoking
Activities Risk Assessment
BigDog promotes a smoke-free workplace and smoking is prohibited in all areas of BigDog workplaces with the exception of a designated outdoor smoking area.
Activity Risk Assessment Hazard Assessment House Risk Assessment
The following rules also apply:
WHS Safety Audit
• Employees are permitted to smoke during authorised breaks only.
Sanitising Vehicles All vehicles will need to be signed out from the administration offices. Sanitising kits are available from reception and vehicles will need to be sanitised prior to returning the car keys.
Shift Notes
• Employees are not permitted to smoke when they are acting in an official capacity
Smoko Breaks Every employee is entitled to a 10 minute paid break each 4 hours of work.
Are to be completed at the end of every shift utilising the BigDog App on your smart phone. Notes should be: • Objective. Only document the facts—what you have seen, heard or witnessed. • Concise. Document the important bits and no more. • Professional. Documentation can be used to investigate incidents that have occurred and can be assessed by the participants that you support. Make sure that you use professional language. • Legible. Don’t use abbreviations, acronyms or uncommon language. • Use appropriate language. No swear words or demeaning terms will be accepted. Data from the shift notes is recorded in a master file and is available in a summary format when required. 12
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Important Notes Administration Offices Reopened All visitors will need to sanitise their hands and practice social distancing. You will be asked a series of questions that will include whether you are feeling unwell and you may be required to have your temperature checked utilising an Infrared Thermometer. If your temperature is 37.8c or more you will not be permitted to enter the office area.
Information Collection The collection of information shall be with the expressed permission of the participant or guardian. Information shall only be in relation to the needs of BigDog with respect to the program or services being provided to the participant. No information is to be retained that does not serve a specific purpose and any personal details will be securely maintained.
Staff Birthdays
June 5th 7th 11th 19th
Hannah C Steve A Brad Mark T Mikaela
Have a great day!
First Aid and CPR Training Booked for Saturday 27th June 8am sharp at the Paul Myatt Centre 11-15 Alexander Street Toowoomba. Those attending have been sent a 44 page HLTAID003 Quiz Questions that must be completed and returned to Darling Downs First Aid lyn.southerden@bigpond.com before attending the course. If you have any problems with completing this workbook, let Ann know. Payment for the courses will be via pay deduction which you will complete on the day rather than having to deal with trying to sort out individual payments.
CPR Training Booked for Saturday 4th July 8am sharp (same address) for those who require the yearly update only.
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New online class from Jungle Body CHANGE Project provider Di, has released a brand new class to her Jungle Bodies series: Get Low. This 45-minute low intensity, low impact workout uses boxing, dance, dumbbells, light cardio and music to get you moving. With only 4 moves per class, it is easy to master. This class is currently been delivered online via Zoom. When: Wednesday 9:15 am and 6:15 pm Where: online via Zoom link Cost: $4.50 per class Contact: Di, phone 0435 120 548 or email distiller1@hotmail.com
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Justice of the Peace This service is available at the Paul Myatt Community Centre 11-15 Alexander Street Toowoomba (please call first to make an appointment) The JPs in the Community Program is also available through major shopping centres, libraries, court houses and hospitals.
Contact Us BigDog Support Services 232 Ruthven Street Toowoomba QLD 4350 PO Box 234 Harlaxton QLD 4350
(07) 4632 9559 1800 22 44 32 0427 408 698 (On Call) www.bigdogsupport.com.au 15
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