Basic Policies, Procedures and Documents for Disability Care

Basic Policies, Procedures and Documents for Disability Care

To ensure compliance with current legislation, sole traders and companies working in disability care with NDIS clients need to have some paperwork in place. This article does not include employee policies.

This information is for unregistered disability providers and sole traders. I will mention this, a great deal of sole traders and sometimes service providers don’t have policies and procedures in place. The importance of having your documents for your business are:

  • If you come to the notice of the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission by any means, for example if a client makes a complaint against you or your business and the NDIS look into your work practices and policies, you can be fined for non-compliance.
  • If a client is seriously injured or dies in your care, and you do not have work health and safety policies and procedures in place, penalties for breach of WHS law can go into the hundreds of thousands depending on the degree or seriousness of liability involved.
  • If a client of family member of a client accuses you of breach of privacy, and takes you to court, fines can be upwards of $2.5 million depending on the scale of the breach.

The main legislation that requires compliance are:

Other documents requiring compliance are:

  • NDIS Code of Conduct
  • State regulations for Work Health & Safety laws
  • State regulations for Privacy laws

Policies and Procedures

Now let’s delve into the essential policies and procedures and documents you’ll need under the Acts. This is going to look like a long list but I assure you these are very useful.

1.   Complaints Management Policy

Under the Disability Services & Inclusion Act 2023, your Complaints Management Policy will provide a process for clients to lodge complaints and will explain how they will be handled by you. A good complaints management policy will give the client several avenues including complaining directly to your business first and if preferred to the NDIA.

2.   Code of Conduct Policy

This policy outlines professional behaviour and ethical standards for you and any staff. Your Code of Conduct Policy affirms how you maintain compliance with the NDIS Code of Conduct. It’s mandatory for all service providers and sole traders to comply with the Code of Conduct.

3.   Privacy and Confidentiality Policy

As a business that handles a person’s health records, you are legally obliged to take reasonable steps to protect and keep confidential your client’s personal information under the Privacy Act 1988, therefore a Privacy & Confidentiality Policy explaining how your business protects client information is essential for compliance.

This policy is being heavily pushed by the NDIS to ensure participants are aware of their rights and have an avenue to complain.

4.   Incident Management Policy

Under the Disability Services & Inclusion Act 2023, your Incident Policy details how to investigate, report and manage incidents involving clients, including any follow up assessments if needed.

Reporting of NDIS Reportable Incidents is mandatory for all service providers and sole traders.

5.   Workplace Health and Safety Policy

Under WHS law sole traders and companies are legally obliged to implement Work Health & Safety procedures and practices to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of yourself and persons in your care including any employees, visitors, etc.

A good WHS policy is a blanket policy covering your Risk Management, Hazard Management, Incident and Emergency Management plans. Yes that’s a mouthful.

Reporting of WHS Notifiable Incidents is mandatory for every business in Australia, including sole traders and companies.

6.   Risk Management Policy

Risk management can seem like a complicated process, however essentially it’s about having a procedure in place where safety risks in care are identified and controlled to minimise harm.

Risks that need to be looked at might include hazards in the home, lack of an emergency plan, visits into the community, transporting a client, risk of behaviours causing harm, risk of trips and falls related to mobility, the risk of absconding, manual handling risks related to using large equipment or transferring clients.

There are a multitude of assessments that can be done specifically for community visits alone depending on where your client visits on a regular basis. Check out our Risk Management Bundle for a bunch of example templates that will help you out in this area.

7.   Emergency Plan

Also under the banner of your workplace health and safety policy will be your Emergency Plan. Do you have an emergency plan in place? What exactly are you going to do if there’s a huge behavioural incident in the shopping centre. If you have employees, how are you going to keep them safe on a client’s premises. If there’s a fire at a client’s home, do you have a plan. Do you have a plan for a client who has a medical emergency. These are all important considerations for your emergency plan.

Even sole traders should have an emergency plan in place to keep clients safe. It’s no longer a world where we can gloss over these types of safety considerations with the NDIA increasing surveillance and compliance checks.

Check out our Emergency Management Policy and Procedure which includes an Emergency Response Plan listing the procedures to take in a large number of emergency situations whilst providing disability care.

8.   Discrimination Policy

This document, usually called Violence, Abuse, Neglect, Exploitation & Discrimination Policy establishes clear protections for vulnerable individuals, ensuring their rights, safety, and dignity are upheld. This policy is closely tied to Australian legislation, including the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, the NDIS Act 2013, and the Disability Services and Inclusion Act 2023, which all mandate the protection of individuals with disabilities from harm and discrimination.

It aligns with the NDIS Code of Conduct, which requires workers to act ethically and respect the rights of participants. This policy also supports adherence to the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, emphasizing the duty of care to protect all individuals from violence and neglect in service settings.

9.   Compliance Register

Your Compliance Register essentially lists your policies and procedures, what legislation they are compliant with and when you will update your policies. This is a great reference tool if you are audited and very useful when you need to check if any of your policies need adjustments to changed legislation.

10.  Continuous Improvement Policy

A Continuous Improvement Policy ensures that businesses in the disability sector maintain quality business practices that service clients in the best way possible. What it also does is to affirm your commitment to providing quality services. It’s a great business policy to have in place.

This simple policy outlines procedures for evaluation and improvement of your services. It’s essentially a feedback mechanism for clients, client family members, staff, and anyone else involved in the care of your client or working with your business. The policy gives your clients in particular, an outlet to make suggestions for service improvement, and therefore advocates for choice and control.

Suggestions people might send you on the feedback form could be work process improvement, innovations, employee wellbeing ideas, service delivery, learning and development ideas, documentation improvements, etc.

    Additional Documents

    There are a couple of other documents essential for compliance and we’ll explain why:

    Intake Form

    The Participant Intake Form is invaluable to service providers and sole traders in the disability care sector because it streamlines the onboarding process for NDIS participants, ensuring that essential information is captured from the start.

    This form covers critical details that form the basis of your service agreement, care plan, invoicing, contact details and personal care information.

    Service Agreements

    These agreements clearly define roles, expectations, fees and responsibilities between your business and the client, leaving no questions around the services you provide.

    A couple of considerations for having a service agreement are:

    • you can prove to the NDIA that a client agreed to a specific hourly rate for support services if the client contests an invoice.
    • you cannot charge travel to a client’s funding unless you have an agreement in writing with your client under the NDIS price guide rules.
    • a service agreement typically includes provisions for cancellations, missed appointments, or termination of services. This protects the provider from losing income due to last-minute cancellations and protects the participant from being charged unfairly.

    By setting clear expectations, the Service Agreement minimises the risk of disputes regarding services, payments, and responsibilities. 

    Care Plan

    A care plan outlines the very specific services and supports each client requires. This document is implemented when you first onboard a client. The client or the client’s representative should sign off on the care plan to avoid any misunderstandings between client, family members and carers.

    Check out our Care Plan Bundle including a complete example care plan.

    Consent Form

    Under the Privacy Act you must have consent from your client to share any information. This means if you need to be able to communicate with the client’s allied health team, other disability support staff, LAC or support coordinator, you must have a consent form signed by your client to share the very basics of their personal care.

    If the client or a family member objects to your handling of their information, you can refer to the signed Consent Form.

    Individualised Plan

    An Individualised Plan for NDIS participants, which outlines personal goals and the steps to achieve them, is crucial for both service delivery and compliance with legislation, particularly the NDIS Act 2013 and the Disability Services and Inclusion Act 2023.

    These laws mandate a person-centred approach, ensuring that services are tailored to the unique needs and aspirations of individuals with disabilities. By creating an individualised plan, providers and sole traders deliver services that empower participants to work toward their personal goals, whether related to independence, community participation, or skill development.

    Client Recordkeeping

    Comprehensive documentation of your support of your client is essential. Use Progress Notes and Daily Care tick and flick sheets to ensure you can prove your business is operating effectively and competently in supporting your client and you are assisting your client to work towards their NDIS Goals.

    Progress notes can also support you if claims of negligence arise in work practices and the NDIA requires proof of the support services you are providing against your invoices.

      In conclusion, having the right documents in place is not only essential for compliance with NDIS and legislative requirements, but also for ensuring the delivery of high-quality, person-centred care.

      These documents provide clear guidelines and protections for both service providers and clients, reducing risks, preventing disputes, and promoting continuous improvement. Whether you're a sole trader or a service provider, investing in a comprehensive set of policies like those outlined in this article can help build trust, ensure safety, and support the long-term success of your business in the disability care sector.

      Check our excellent value Policies & Procedures Bundle for Service Providers and Sole Traders. We also have each of these policies available separately on our site.

      Amanda Watterson

       

       

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