In the NDIS industry, putting the participant at the centre of everything we do is very important. A person-centred care approach will help your organisation not only tailor services according to the individual's unique needs but also ensure that they achieve their NDIS goals. In this article, we will explore the tips and steps to effectively deliver person-centred care to your participants.

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Why Does Person-Centred Care Experience Matter?

Every person with a disability must have a significant say in the care that they receive. Person-centred care is about acknowledging and respecting the rights of people with disabilities, allowing them to make key life decisions. This approach doesn't just give them the freedom to determine what is best for them; it's also a pathway to higher-quality support.

Studies show that when care is tailored to the individual, their physical and social well-being improves, satisfaction increases, and for those with learning disabilities, there's a significant improvement in community involvement and personal connections, as well as daily decision-making.

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Steps to Deliver Person-Centred Care to Your NDIS Participants

Providing person-centred care requires an understanding of the participant's goals and situation, some smart planning, and the ability to monitor and respond quickly to the client's progress. Let's explore the steps you can take to guarantee person-centred care for your NDIS participant.

Understand Your Participant's Goals

Person-centred care starts with knowing your NDIS participants.  It's about understanding not only their health and needs but also their wants and goals. A SMART goal will help service providers achieve this level of understanding.

SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals. It's a way to make sure goals are clear, realistic, and attainable in a specific period of time. It's important for caregivers to communicate with the participant when making these goals to ensure that the goals align with the participant's wants, needs, and life circumstances.

Let's say a participant wants to get better at socialising. A SMART goal might be: "Join a group activity at least once a week for the next two months to improve social skills." This goal is:

• Specific: Joining a group activity.
• Measurable and Achievable: Once a week.
• Relevant: Group activity is relevant to the goal of getting better at social skills.
• Time-bound: Over two months.

Setting SMART goals is the first step to making a clear plan for the participant's NDIS journey. It's more than just making goals; it's about identifying a milestone that the participant is excited to work toward. 

Developing a Person-centred Plan

After setting a SMART goal, it's time to create a detailed, person-centred plan for your participant. You can think of this plan as a roadmap that doesn't just tackle the participant's needs but also sets the direction for reaching their goals.

Firstly, it's essential to identify where the participant is right now, considering their health, feelings, social life, what the participant has been through, and what they think. Combining this information with the SMART goals, you can lay out the steps or services needed for the participants to hit these goals. 

Life is full of surprises, and your participant's situation might change. Therefore, you should keep checking in on the plan and adjust it as the participant progresses toward their goals. This isn't only about being adaptable; it's a sign that you're actively listening and prepared to act quickly, depending on the participant's situations or changes that occur in their life.

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Monitoring your Participant's Progress

Continuously monitoring your participant's progress is what makes care person-centred. This is where progress notes are invaluable tools that allow caregivers to keep track of the participant's progress over time. This ongoing process ensures that each participant is provided with support that adapts and grows just as they do.

Progress notes are a "diary" that keeps track of all the big and small changes happening during your participant's care plan. They're packed with details about NDIS participants' physical, emotional, and mental health progress, as well as the achievements that they've had along the way. Overall, progress notes aren't just paperwork; they're key to helping your team stay in the loop, making sure everything is on track, and showing if the support being provided is helping the participants achieve their goals.

NDIS Progress Notes Best Practices

Clarity and Conciseness are Key: When writing progress notes, clear and concise language is crucial. For example, instead of writing, "James seemed a bit down in the afternoon," a more precise language would be, "James expressed feelings of fatigue and sadness in the afternoon."

Active Voice Makes a Difference: Utilising an active voice in your NDIS progress notes can make the action more straightforward and the note more personal and engaging. For example, instead of writing, "Miss Ella was escorted to her room," you might write, "We escorted Miss Ella to her room."

Avoid Industry-specific Abbreviations: While it might be convenient to use industry-specific language or abbreviations, progress notes might be read by the participants themselves or their families who do not have healthcare background. Therefore, you should keep the language simple and jargon-free to ensure everyone understands the notes. For example, instead of writing, "We transfer Anna Brown to PC," clearly state, "We transfer Anna Brown to Palliative Care."

Authenticity is Crucial: Everyone makes mistakes, and you may need to correct an entry in your progress notes at some point. If an error is made, don't try to mask it. Instead, strike through the incorrect information, provide the correct information, and sign and date it. This transparency ensures that the care provided remains verifiable and trustworthy.

Stay Updated: It's crucial to review recent entries at the start of each session. This practice ensures you're aware of any recent progress, challenges, or achievements, allowing for a seamless continuation of high-quality, person-centred care.

Common NDIS Progress Notes Mistakes

Generalising Individual Experiences: One of the most common mistakes in writing progress notes, especially for group services, is generalising participants' experiences. Notes often need to capture the full details of a participant's experience or response to the service provided. For instance, if a participant doesn't respond well during the therapy session, caregivers can expand on her mood, any attempted communication, or responses.

Not Linking Back to NDIS Goals.: Regardless of the type of service that is delivered, each progress note should demonstrate how the session or activity contributes to the participant's NDIS goals.

Lacking Consistency and Completeness: Inconsistency in the timing of note-taking can lead to inconsistency in the progress note detail. Therefore, caregivers should establish a routine for writing notes, such as immediately after each session, to ensure that every written note covers all essential observations and details.

Including Other Participants' Information: When documenting interactions, especially in group settings, avoiding including sensitive information about other participants is essential.

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Plan Reassessments

Plan reassessments (formerly known as plan review) are a key part of the participant's journey. The plan reassessments are initiated by NDIA annually. It is an opportunity for the participants and service providers to reflect, adjust, and ensure that the services provided are helping the participants progress toward their NDIS goals.

The service providers play an essential role in this assessment because they can help the participant provide the information that is helpful for the NDIA and the participant to decide if they need any change in their next plan:

• What aspects of the plan helped the participants hit their NDIS goals?
• Where did the plan fall short, and why?
• Has the participant been progressing toward their goals?
• Are the participant's goals the same as they were, or have their goals changed due to any event that they experienced during the journey? 

By providing such details, service providers can help ensure that each participant's plan is adjusted (if needed) so that they can empower and fulfil the participants' needs, wants, and aspirations.

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Deliver Person-centred Care at Scales with Comm.care

A user-friendly and efficient care management software can significantly enhance your care delivery by allowing your organisation to deliver person-centred care at scales. Since 2013, our software, Comm.care, has revolutionised the way 800+ businesses operate, collaborate, and manage their participant's progress. Below are the key features that make Comm.care an invaluable tool for NDIS service providers:

Progress Notes in Real-Time: With Comm.care, caregivers can document and access NDIS progress notes right at the point of care, ensuring your progress notes are precise, detailed, and informative. 

Single-view Timeline: Our  "timeline" feature brings your team, participants and their families on the same page by providing a unified view of all participant data, documents, and care plans. 

Unified Communication: Comm.care's feed feature revolutionises how your team, participants and their families communicate and collaborate. Like a social media feed, our feature is where your team, participants, and their families share updates and insights during the participant's journey. As a result, your team can effectively communicate and collaborate to deliver person-centred care for your participants.

‍Book a demo now to explore how Comm.care can empower your team and business to deliver person-centred care at scales.