Effective NDIS incident reporting is essential—not only for keeping your participants safe but also for ensuring your organisation meets its compliance obligations. A clear incident reporting process helps you respond quickly and appropriately when things go wrong, minimising harm and safeguarding trust.

Understanding NDIS Incident Reporting

An NDIS incident can be any event that harms or has the potential to harm, an NDIS participant. This could be physical or emotional harm, accidental or deliberate. Examples include injuries, abuse, or neglect. NDIS incident reporting is important for protecting your clients, staff, and your organisation.

What are NDIS incident reporting obligations?

As a registered NDIS provider, you have clear obligations for incident reporting. Under NDIS rules, you must report all reportable incidents (including alleged reportable incidents) that occur to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. These include:

• Death of an NDIS participant.
• Serious injury requiring medical treatment or hospitalisation.
• Abuse or neglect (physical, emotional, or financial).
• Physical contact, or assault.
• Sexual misconduct, including grooming or harassment.
• Unauthorised restrictive practices used on a participant.

Failing to report the incidents quickly can result in serious penalties, including fines, loss of your NDIS registration, or damage to your organisation's reputation.

How do you create an NDIS incident report template?

Creating an effective NDIS incident report involves capturing the essential details of an incident. It helps the NDIS Commission understand exactly what happened and how you responded.

Every reportable incident report must include these important details:

• Date, time, and location of the incident.
• Names and contact details of your organisation, the person submitting the notification, and everyone involved (including any witnesses).
• A clear description of exactly what happened, highlighting any harm or impact on the participant.
• Immediate actions you've taken, including risk assessments and measures implemented to protect the health, safety, and well-being of those involved. Note if you've reported the incident to the police or another relevant authority.

Write your report using straightforward language. Stick to facts and avoid opinions or assumptions. If possible, include quantifiable details, like the severity of injuries or duration of the incident.

What should you do when responding to an NDIS incident?

When an NDIS incident occurs, your response should be structured and clear. Here’s exactly what you need to do:

Step 1: Ensure immediate safety

First, make sure everyone involved is safe. If necessary, contact emergency services or take immediate action to protect those at risk.

Step 2: Notify key personnel quickly

When you become aware of an incident, immediately inform one of these people:

• A member of your organisation’s key personnel
• Your supervisor or manager
• The person your incident management system identifies as responsible for reporting incidents to the NDIS Commission (Specified Personnel)

Step 3: Assess the incident thoroughly

After ensuring immediate safety, quickly assess the incident to find out:

• Why the incident occurred
• Whether it could have been prevented
• How effectively it was managed and resolved
• What actions you need to take to prevent similar incidents or reduce their impact
• If other authorities or people need to be notified (e.g., Police or Child Protection)

Document the detailed assessment, including causes, effects on the participant, and any operational issues, clearly in your incident management system.

Step 4: Determine if the incident is reportable

The responsible person in your organisation must determine if the incident meets the criteria of a "reportable incident." If the incident is reportable, proceed to the next step.

Step 5: Notify the NDIS Commission

For reportable incidents, submit an Immediate Notification Form through the NDIS Commission Portal.

• You must notify the NDIS Commission within five business days of becoming aware of the incident.
• If the incident involves unauthorised restrictive practices, serious injuries, abuse, neglect, or death must notify within 24 hours.

How to submit an incident report to the NDIS Commission?

When a reportable incident happens, you must quickly notify the NDIS Commission. Here’s how to submit your report correctly and promptly:

Step 1: Log in to the NDIS Commission Portal

• Go to the My Reportable Incidents page on the NDIS Commission Portal using your PRODA account.
• This portal is the official platform for submitting incident reports directly to the NDIS Commission.

Step 2: Complete the Immediate Notification Form

Submit the Immediate Notification Form to notify the Commission. The Immediate Notification Form should include:

• Date, time, and location of the incident.
• Names and contact details of your organisation, the person submitting the notification, and everyone involved (including any witnesses).
• A clear description of exactly what happened, highlighting any harm or impact on the participant.
• Immediate actions you've taken, including risk assessments and measures implemented to protect the health, safety, and well-being of those involved. Note if you've reported the incident to the police or another relevant authority.

Step 3: Provide additional information

Beyond the required details, you can include extra information to help the NDIS Commission better understand how you've managed the incident and reduced any ongoing risks.

• Support measures – Explain how you've supported the participant, ensuring their health, safety, and well-being after the incident.
• Decision rationale – Outline why you classified this incident as reportable.
• Investigation outcomes – Summarise any internal investigations and their results.
• Risk assessments – Describe the actions you've taken to prevent similar incidents in the future.

The NDIS Commission might request further details if they need more clarity, so providing the additional information upfront can speed up the process.

When should you conduct an NDIS incident investigation?

An investigation helps you clearly understand why an incident happened, how it affected the participant, and what factors led to it. Here are some situations when an investigation might be necessary:

• The cause is unclear or complicated: Sometimes the reason behind an incident isn't obvious. It might involve multiple factors, and you'll need a deeper look to find out exactly what happened.
• The incident has a significant impact: If the incident seriously affected a participant’s safety, health, or well-being, a full investigation helps identify improvements to prevent future incidents.
• The incident involves allegations against support workers: When a worker’s actions are questioned, an investigation clarifies what happened and helps you manage any potential risks effectively.

How to conduct an NDIS incident investigation?

When conducting an investigation, you should document who will manage or oversee it—this person is called the investigator. A thorough investigation typically covers three key steps:

1. Establish the cause of the incident.
2. Determine its impact on the participant.
3. Identify operational factors that contributed to the incident.

Who should conduct the investigation?

Usually, your organisation handles the investigation internally. But if the situation requires specialised skills, or there's a potential conflict of interest, it’s important to involve external experts. In some cases, the NDIS Commission might instruct you to bring in an external investigator.

How to choose the right investigator?

Your investigator must be independent, impartial, and objective. You should choose an investigator who had no involvement in the incident. You could select:

• Someone from a different team or area within your organisation
• Someone from another registered NDIS provider
• An external professional with specialist investigation skills and experience

Do you need an NDIS incident management system?

An incident management system is mandatory. As a registered NDIS provider, having a structured incident management system in place is a condition of your registration. When you apply or renew your NDIS registration, auditors will verify that you have clear processes for identifying, managing, and resolving incidents. If you don’t have a suitable system, you could fail the registration.

The requirements for your NDIS incident management system are:

1. Establish clear NDIS policies and procedures: Clearly define what counts as an incident, especially reportable incidents. Your policy should explain who is responsible, what actions to take, and the required reporting timelines.

2. Create a central reporting tool: Use an NDIS incident management system to log and track all incidents. This system should be easy for all staff to access and use.

3. Train your staff thoroughly: Regular training ensures your team knows what incidents to report and how to document them accurately. Provide incident report templates so your staff can document incidents clearly and consistently.

4. Regularly review and improve: Consistently review incidents, identify patterns, and update your processes to prevent future incidents. This ongoing review ensures continuous improvement and greater safety for everyone involved.

Manage incidents effectively with Pnyx

The Pnyx Quality Management System makes incident management easy, organised, and proactive. With Pnyx, you can:

• Log and track incidents seamlessly, ensuring every detail is documented and every response is clearly recorded.
• Use customisable incident-report templates designed specifically for NDIS requirements, helping your team save time and report accurately.
• Access real-time analytics and insights to identify trends, learn from incidents, and continuously improve your service quality.
• Stay compliant and audit-ready at all times with built-in compliance tools and clear, secure records.

Pnyx empowers your team to respond swiftly, improve continuously, and turn every incident into a learning opportunity. Find out how Pnyx helps you stay in control and deliver person-centre care, every day.

FAQ

What are the key steps in the NDIS incident reporting process?

First, ensure immediate safety for everyone involved. Next, notify key personnel in your organisation and assess the incident thoroughly to determine its cause, impact, and necessary actions. Decide whether the incident is reportable, and if it is, notify the NDIS Commission promptly. Finally, document the incident clearly and conduct follow-up actions or investigations as required.

How do I notify the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission of an incident?

Notify the NDIS Commission through the My Reportable Incidents page on the NDIS Commission Portal using your PRODA account. Complete and submit the Immediate Notification Form within 24 hours of becoming aware of the incident. You must provide further details within five business days using the Five-Day Form. Include clear details about the incident, immediate actions taken, and any further follow-up measures.

What information is required in an NDIS incident report?

An NDIS incident report must include the date, time, and location of the incident, along with names and contact details of everyone involved. Clearly describe what happened, detailing any harm or impact on the participant. Outline immediate actions taken, including risk assessments and protective measures, and indicate if the incident was reported to authorities. Additionally, you may need to provide supporting information such as investigation outcomes and follow-up measures.