Disability Services

In reply to Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (18 July 2014). (Estimates Committee A)

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries):

Western Australia has recently funded the Individualised Community Living Strategy (the Strategy). The strategy is a focused program that provides up to 100 people who have mental illness, and have been long stay inpatients of psychiatric wards, with housing and support dependent on their needs from both government mental health services and non-government organisations. Over time the strategy will become available to other people who have frequent inpatient stays.

To enter the strategy, people are referred through government mental health services. Funding for the strategy is based on individual need and is matched depending on whether the support is low, medium, high or very high. The level of support (and hence funding level) is approved and reviewed by an independent panel. The funding is attached to the mental health consumer and paid in advance to the respective non-government provider. The funding transfers with the consumer should they change location and/ or non-government provider. The strategy is still in the early stages of development and there has not been an official evaluation at this stage.

A person in the strategy participates in planning and can choose which non-government preferred provider they receive services from but does not determine how their funding is spent.

There are parallels between the strategy and programs in South Australia, such as the Housing and Accommodation Support Partnership, which provides housing, public mental health service support and non-government organisation support to 79 people. SA Health is keen to note the progress of the strategy as it becomes more established.

The NDIS differs from the strategy in that planning between the person and Disability Care Australia will identify two kinds of supports—fixed supports and flexible supports. Fixed supports are not controlled by the person and are those deemed essential to their health and safety, and flexible supports are controlled by the person depending on their support and engagement needs at the time.