Working as a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provider is an incredibly rewarding job, but it does have its own set of unique challenges. At the core of any consultant’s goal is to provide compassion, care, and support for those most in need, but given the scope, there’s a hefty amount of administrative work that underpins the role.
Managing workload is of utmost importance: having everything organized so that your main focus is the person you’re there to support requires that you leverage a wide variety of tools and services to help you. Thankfully, there are many things you can do to ease the burden, and so in this article, we’re going to explore the tools available to ensure you can give the most time possible to those who need your help.
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The Basics
As is the case with anything, a rigorous understanding of the basics of your role as an NDIS provider represents the most fundamentally important part of your job. Even though you’ll have been taught this stuff during your training, it’s impossible to remember every detail several months or years into the role. This means that it’s pivotal to keep on top of it early, so let’s take a look at the non-negotiables.
Knowing the Standards
Right off the bat, the most crucial element of your services as an NDIS provider is to know the NDIS standards like the back of your hand. Always ensure you keep up to date with the Your Legal Requirements page on the NDIS website; the rules and regulations are made very clear, and familiarising yourself with them thoroughly not only means you’re safely serving your client (the most important thing), but that you save time by not having to routinely second guess your judgments.
Of course, attaining a native degree of familiarity like this is something that takes time to develop, but starting early ensures you have the most important core philosophies ingrained in your mind so that you rarely have to think about them.
Conducting Audits and Maintaining Records
It may seem a tedious topic, but neglecting audits and records can land you in hot water very quickly.
From the day you start working with a client, you need to make sure every piece of communication you have with them is documented, and both these communications and the client’s personal records must be stored in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) under the Privacy Act of 1988.
Thankfully, most common operating systems offer the ability to encrypt data at the hardware level, such as BitLocker on Microsoft Windows, FileVault on Apple’s MacOS, and dm-crypt on Linux.
Conducting regular audits is also very important: as you’ll know, the role of an NDIS provider represents a highly multifaceted role with a sometimes dizzying array of moving parts. While the tools discussed will help immensely in organizing these elements, it’s very important to routinely analyze what’s working and what isn’t; each element resembles a cog in what must remain a well-oiled machine, and it’s key to know when to stick with something and when to change it.
On the most basically important level, this will entail periodically referencing and reviewing your methods and practices against the aforementioned NDIS standards. On a deeper level, you are required to have a deep understanding of your client’s individual needs and understand what works for them personally to ensure they’re receiving the best care possible.
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Peer Support
No matter what job you do, peer support is always going to represent a key pillar in your continued development. Building a strong support network made up of other consultants and individuals who work within Allied Health is crucial – especially at a time when more and more individuals are working from home and there are fewer physical events to go to.
There will be – and likely already have been – multiple moments in your career when you need to lean on someone who has been there for support; meeting new people in the field also provides unique opportunities to learn, and where your clients are concerned, bringing the knowledge base and unique insights from other people in the industry to your own practice offers them the best support.
Organization and Planning: Lean on the Technology
Now more than ever, leveraging digital technology is at the cornerstone of efficient work. Once you have the basics under your belt, your next port of call should be seeking out the latest and best tools to help your work flow smoothly. Again, adopting these sorts of principles early in your career saves you a lot of hassle in the long run – even if you have to exert a small amount of effort, in the beginning, to get things properly set up.
Software packages
Consulting in this sort of role 20 years ago was far more laborious from an administrative standpoint than it is now. Folders upon folders of data will have filled your available office space, and no matter how much effort you’d have put into organizing and filing efficiently, something was bound to get lost or mixed up at some point.
Thankfully, today’s technology means we can do away with most of that, and the process is far more streamlined – and secure – than ever before.
Software for NDIS providers can be incredibly helpful in enabling you to organize the huge array of appointments, documents, and schedules you encounter as a consultant. These sorts of software packages offer everything you could think to need, with features like Zoom and Teams integration for easy telehealth communication, streamlined appointment scheduling services, easy-to-use timesheets, bulk invoicing services, and more.
They’re ultimately designed to be a one-stop station to efficiently manage your business, so before you look to any other individual software to aid you, NDIS-specific packages should be your first go-to.
Messaging Services
Keeping in contact with clients and colleagues has never been easier thanks to the advent of business-focused messaging services. Apps like Slack have become something of a standard for many businesses, and you can use it to segment communications between different groups but still keep everything in one place.
In more ways than one, these services offer a more straightforward, user-friendly experience than email, and they usually offer very flexible features for sharing files and even doing group video calling.
While these services can be very useful, though, do ensure to set appropriate boundaries between you and your clients and colleagues so far as when is an acceptable time to contact you. Work-life balance is one area we won’t be touching on in this article, but it’s something you should pay close consideration to.
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Seeking Out Opportunities to Learn
Lastly, let’s discuss seeking out learning opportunities. The very best consultants in any field – and indeed, those involved in any life-long practice – consistently seek out ways to better their skills and discover new things.
Given the sheer scope of the different types of clientele you’ll be working with as an NDIS provider, along with the many different directions the role can take you, this isn’t a job you want to remain static with. We’ve already briefly discussed networking with peers and other like-minded professionals, but it’s also important to seek out opportunities outside your immediate network to gain new insights.
While physical events are typically fewer in number these days, there are still several around that are very much worth attending. The best place to find out more about what events are taking place within the current year is the Latest events page on the NDIS website. Here, you can browse and filter through the latest opportunities – whether they’re annual events occurring every year or one-off presentations.
On the same page, you should also check out the Stories and videos for a varied and extensive assortment of educational videos aimed at providing insight and educating on a whole manner of topics pertaining to NDIS services.
It’s also worth mentioning that there’s a lot to be gained from sources outside of the NDIS, too; your role as a consultant pertains more broadly to the topic of learning how best to care for vulnerable individuals, so any books, events, and presentations (online or in person) on this topic may be of value.
Scaling back even further, there are plenty of great presentations from well-known icons that can be found online and offer motivation for self-improvement – whether personally or professionally. Be sure to get creative and keep an open mind.
Wrapping Up
In this article, you’ve learned some of the most important foundational concepts not just for becoming an experienced, trustworthy NDIS consultant, but for propelling yourself forward as a reliable and efficient working individual.
Of course, at the end of the day, the advice provided here is for best supporting the people you’re caring for, no matter what specific area you’re involved in; connecting with your clients, understanding them, and providing compassion, is at the heart of this role, and getting the fundamentals under control allows you to place all of your effort where it’s most important.
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