It all started with the fourth piece in our confusion-clearing and myth-busting series about the NDIS: ‘Is it true that self management means hiring all my workers?’ We received great responses to this piece, and asked one commenter, Ellen Fraser-Barbour, to write a guest blog post based on her thoughts and concerns around the new ways people with disability can hire their support workers.

We published her piece ‘Yes we want to hire workers more easily. But let’s also talk safeguards and support’, which then inspired us to seek responses from three new kinds of organisations: Better Caring, Hireup and MySupports.

To recap, the three issues Ellen raised in her blog post are:

Issue 1: How do we show commitment to building trust between people with a disability, families, workers and organisations?

Issue 2: What avenues are there for disclosing issues safely and confidentially if things go wrong between individuals and their workers?

Issue 3: Who is responsible for offering professional development to individuals, their families or their workers as we navigate this new NDIS world?

Why these three organisations? Because they represent the different kinds of options and because they are all interested in people taking greater control of their services and supports and to assisting more people self manage. There are other organisations that provide similar services to those listed above, and we recommend doing your own research before deciding on who can best support you in hiring support staff.

Before you read their responses to Ellen’s issues it’s important to know some of the differences between them. It provides an important framework for their responses.

Hireup is actually an employer. They just help people connect with each other via an online platform as opposed to a physical office.

Better Caring is a an online platform that connects people with disability to self employed people (independent contractors). This means their relationship to people on their platform is a bit different to Hireup.

Lastly, we invited MySupports to respond. They are also an employer. We invited them because of their commitment to employing people with disabilities and family carers, and because of their interest in promoting and developing self directed supports.

We thank Ellen, particularly, for her contribution to this important and growing conversation. We’ve edited the organisations’ responses for length and cohesion, but we’ll provide links to responses these organisations post to their own pages over the coming weeks. As always, if you’d like to add your thoughts, experiences and questions to the conversation, you can leave a comment below or on our Facebook page, or send us an email.

We’ll now hand over to Better Caring, Hireup and My Supports, whose responses are on the following pages.

Better Caring – next page

Hireup – page 3

My Supports – page 4

Well we got some great responses and comments and asked one commentator if she would like to write a Guest Blog to keep the conversation going. Thank you Ellen Fraser-Barbour*! We think you have raised some excellent points to consider around the recruitment of support workers.

We have reached out, and are hoping that our next piece is a response from some organisations discussed in our original piece. That way we can get a really good conversation going.

Over to you, Ellen.

Photo of Ellen Fraser-Barbour

The NDIS market has seen a rise in the range of services offered, from large traditional provider models to smaller in-community neighbourhood team and online connector models. In my experience the NDIS is opening doors to new exciting opportunities and this should be encouraged.  In my experience online models offer simplicity, flexibility, ease of booking, convenience and affordability. In-community support workers working within an agency or team, can offer a degree of support and “back-up” when planning and managing all the ins and outs of what this important work entails.

I have been wondering, however, about how these new types of self management models safeguard. Yes they, alongside all service providers, have policies in place to ensure safety, security and support for individuals, families and workers and these policies are vitally important but I can think of many examples where traditional large agencies are up to the hilt in policy but do necessarily invest in developing an active organisational culture or practice that truly embraces a human rights approach at base level. Policies are there, but putting this into practice seems to be easier said, than done. This has been highlighted in recent inquiries into abuse in disability services.

If questions of accountability and complaints processes were difficult to ask within large traditional service systems prior to the NDIS, it is now an urgent consideration with the NDIS. Bureaucracy is still there and it is still exhausting and ‘messy’ and complex for people with disabilities and their families to navigate. The only difference is that ideally, people with a disability now decide who is worth the stress and who isn’t.

In my experience, the issues of safeguarding are not black and white, like they might seem in policies. I can think of many examples of risky scenarios and ethical dilemmas people find themselves in every day. Life is complicated and there may be times when individuals or families are under immense stress. These stresses vary over time and place. Some situations of crisis are very apparent but others seem more hidden and are not identified until things have already escalated and workers might need to be able to respond in a moment to these situations. Adversity and crisis can take over and informal support networks may disintegrate. In these circumstances, support workers and professionals may be the primary point of contact for support and a vital link. In reality, however, workers may only be employed for short times, may not be not highly skilled and are working for a basic wage with a high turn over rate. There may be times when there’s a crisis beyond the scope of what that worker can deal with. I think there are times when the worker may well decide it’s “too hard” and leave, or alternatively, individuals may question the actions of workers and may well decide to sack. One hears about families who have been through a whole range of workers lasting a very short time. I think this usually suggests that the support networks fail both workers and individuals.

I think this is where Support-Coordinators or case-managers can be useful. If they’re good at their job, they would be “checking in” to see how things are going with individuals and with their support ‘team’. There may also be times when conflicts happen (because we’re human) and NDIS goals slip to the bottom of our priority list. Issues need to be addressed rapidly, calmly and sensitively and this is aided when there is an identified person available and accessible within that person’s network. Support Coordinators can debrief with families and assist with transitioning to new supports or linking to other disability or mainstream services.

At base level, questions need to be asked about safeguards when self-managing support workers. I admit to feeling out of my depth in even trying to pinpoint some specific questions and I worry I’m opening a can of worms, but I will put myself out on a limb here in the hope that some conversation is generated.

Here are a handful of questions I think organisations or self-managing employers could consider.

How do we show commitment to building trust between people with a disability, families, workers and organisations?

Without trust, it is very difficult for anyone to feel safe disclosing concerns. We are human and what is conflicting for one person, may not be for others. I think this is particularly relevant if connecting workers & individuals online without face to face meetings or a “middle man”. Expectations of stakeholders aren’t always made clear.

What avenues are there for disclosing issues safely and confidentially if things go wrong between individuals and their workers?

If support workers are not part of an organisation who do individuals and/or workers negotiate and receive support from, in times of conflict and stress? Being the direct employer is appealing when things are going well. With participants “driving the bus” so to speak, it means issues should be discussed with them first (as it should be). But what happens when there is a crisis and the person with the disability and/or their workers need more support and resources?

In my experience and from what I have heard of others, even in large organisations with strict hierarchical structures, support for individuals and workers is often lacking in times of crisis. With more workers without any back up or organisation, how are stakeholders protected when approaching sensitive concerns and possible conflicts?

Who is responsible for offering professional development to individuals, their families or their workers as we navigate this new NDIS world?

How is training is offered and how frequent is this training? In particular how do self-managed employers and independent employees access professional development to keep abreast development in the field and up to date best practice? How do we standardise training across sectors in light of the NDIS?  In circumstances where agencies are involved, how much time do service providers really have and how often do they touch base with both individuals and workers and offer professional development, training, debriefing or support?

Of course, these are just a handful of questions one could ask – the issues are complex and I don’t think there are silver bullet solutions or quick answers in terms of how we navigate safeguards and dignity of risk. I am, however, an optimist and a believer in generating conversations about where the gaps are.  These conversations need to represent diversity in order to be truly productive. I hope that there are opportunities for the voices of many to be heard.

I also hope that in writing this piece, I might encourage people to share personal experiences and ideas about how we engage, build bridges and offer the best quality supports and continue to work towards progress.

*Disclaimer:   The author wishes to make it clear that this writing does NOT represent the views of organisations she works for – past or present and is merely her own perspective.

NOTE; The majority of concerns are not necessarily about abuse, or violence and are not severe in nature- but there are times when they are and in these circumstances professionals at all levels of services are mandated to formally report any incidences or suspicions of abuse, violence or neglect to their respective statutory bodies such as the Child Abuse Report line (in SA).

Ellen Fraser-Barbour

This is the fourth post  in our confusion-clearing and myth-busting series about the NDIS. Thank you to everyone who’s provided feedback so far – keep it coming!

Here is another myth that has come through to us: People are being told that, if they choose self-management, they have to employ all their workers. Comments are also being made to people that make self-management seem the same as becoming an employer. Again, the implication here is that self-management is really hard work .

This is incorrect.

Yes, self-management offers flexibility in your funding to employ support workers yourself if that’s what you want to do. No, you don’t have to employ support workers yourself if that’s not what you want to do.

We’ve previously written about the practical benefits and current NDIS-related issues with self-managing your NDIS funds. In addition, you can also view information about self-management under the ‘Self-managing budgets in my NDIS plan’ module*.

Sometimes links to areas on the NDIA website don’t work as they should; the 404 error periodically appears when accessing information. If you’re having difficulty reaching any NDIA links we’ve posted in any of our blogs, please let us know. We’ve also contacted the NDIA about this, and we’ll let you know what’s going on when we find out.

Regarding self-management, every worker needs to be legally employed in Australia; they will either be employed by a service provider/you, or they will be self-employed.

There are three ways you can get the support staff you need, and we’ve added another. You’ll also find that the NDIA itself has published information about this, and we’ll point you in that direction as we go.

1)    Employ people yourself (also known as “Direct Employment”)

If you choose this option, you do employ support workers yourself. This means you become an employer – which means you have some legal responsibilities.

Some good places to start looking for information about this are Pearl Staffing Options and My Place.

More information about direct employment from the NDIA can be found at ‘Directly engaging my own staff’. ‘Mind the Gap: Disability Matters’ have also put out a great info sheet about direct employment that breaks the process down into manageable chunks, and explains each step of the direct employment process.

There are benefits to employing people yourself that make this option attractive to many people. One of the benefits is that you could make more savings between the rate that the NDIA pays, and the rate you pay your workers. This is because you don’t have to deal with ‘middle people’ – not because you pay workers less. These savings can mean that more direct support hours are available to you, or you possibly even have the option of hiring someone at a higher rate to do admin tasks (rostering, communicating with staff, organising team meetings, etc). This is just one of the ways that self-management (and plan-management, for that matter) offers more flexibility.

If you have Support Coordination funded in you NDIS Plan, you could also ask them to help you research information, and to link you in with people who have successfully self-managed their own NDIS funding. Alternatively, you may just want to learn more about this option to consider for your future NDIS plans.

InCharge has assisted people whose only experience of support workers was ‘being sent respite workers’ from a local agency. These people have subsequently explored, and taken up, direct employment of their own support staff. This is because we were able to support people through the process by moving through all the available options together, exploring the pros and cons of each, and then linking people in with information and resources.

What we can tell you is that if you do choose direct employment, although it can be daunting at the start, it is easy to maintain once you’ve got it up and going. But if you still don’t want to employ support workers directly, there are other ways you can self-manage your NDIS funds:

2)    Using support workers who are self-employed (also known as ‘independent contractors’)

The NDIA have summed this one up perfectly:

“A contract support worker operates similarly to most gardeners, cleaners and tradespeople, and has their own ABN and insurance and will provide you with an invoice to be paid.”

What you see here are examples of workers who supply their services to more than one client – or have started a small business because they intend to supply services to a number of clients.

When contracting support workers, there are important considerations to take into account. It’s not always straightforward whether a worker is an employee or contractor – just because they have an ABN and charge by the hour, this doesn’t necessarily make them a contractor. The Australian Tax Office (ATO) has a great video and easy questionnaire that can help you work out (a) whether your worker is an employee or contractor, and (b) the legal and financial implications of both of these. Pearl Staffing Options QLD also provides some good information around the difference between employees and contractors.

If there’s anything you’re unsure about, it’s best to contact the ATO directly.

Using independent contractors can be a great option as well: The contractor might advertise their fees, and you can decide whether you think these fees are reasonable. Some contractors might be willing to negotiate their fees, and they won’t necessarily charge higher on weekends or of a nighttime.

One of the reasons people choose this option is because, like direct employment, there is no ‘middle person/organisation’ between you and the support worker – which means that you can potentially make savings on your funding with this option as well.

3)    Through a support provider of your choice

Of course, you may still be able to find support workers through a service provider who has support workers ‘on their books’. In this case, the service provider is their employer.

The NDIA has said that:

“You can use any service provider you want to use. If a service provider or agency you want to use is registered with the NDIA, you can still self-manage your NDIS Budget and use their services.

In this instance, the registered service provider will provide you with an invoice to be paid rather than accessing your funds directly through the NDIS Portal.”

As with each option, this option has its pros and cons. The obvious advantage is that the support provider would take care of all the legal responsibilities of employment. In addition, they may also have a ready pool of support workers – and some providers may also be okay with employing people you find.

There are also new kinds of providers that also promote peer to peer connection.

The cons of this option are that, under the NDIS, the provider might claim the full NDIS payment rate from your NDIS Plan. This may mean you don’t make the savings we mentioned in the first two options that might enable you to get more support hours, etc. This may or may not be important to you. The provider may also have rules around using their workers – even ones you find – so it’s important that you have and understand a service agreement with said provider.

Finally, we wanted to touch on some of the new, online ways people are finding their support workers.

4)    Connecting, searching and finding support workers online

Our fourth option is really to help you to understand some of the new, online platforms being developed. You can use any of these platforms when you self-manage your NDIS funds. New online platforms give you a pool of potential workers to look at and engage with, and these workers can be employed in the ways we’ve talked about in this post.

Newer online organisations such as HireUp (an employer) and Better Caring (a platform that connects you with self-employed workers) are essentially the Gumtree of disability services: People with disability and support workers can sign up, provide their details and effectively cut out the ‘middle man’ when choosing their own staff.

These are by no means the only choices. A quick online search comes up with other options as well, and we always encourage people to research and decide on what is a right fit for them.

There are also state-specific as well as national Facebook groups set up and run by peers for the same purpose, such as Australian People with Disabilities and Support Workers Connections and WA Families and Disability Support Workers Network.

Online organisations give people the flexibility of choosing their own staff while the organisation provides administrative support; whereas peer-run groups give people the opportunity to meet and hire people at a grassroots level. There are also groups of people who get together to share information about how and where to find good support – this is called Peer Support to Buy Support. Two organisations we’re aware of are VALID (Victoria) and CDAH (Newcastle, NSW). Again, we encourage you to do your own research and make the best decision for you.

SUMMARY: You can employ all your support workers yourself, but you don’t have to. There are three ways the NDIA suggests you can find staff, and we’ve suggested an extra way. You might also want a mix of employees and contractors.

What all this means is that, when you self-manage your funds, there are many ways you can get support while maximising your freedom.

Photo of Laurel Lambert

Guest blog by Laurel Lambert

Laurel’s daughter, Peta, and her friend Natalie, recently purchased a unit with the help of a mortgage. They also live in the Hunter, NSW, and have been through the NDIS. She says that one of the biggest factors in making change is having an ambition that is worth the effort and that you know, deep down inside yourself, will help you to be in a good place.

Want to hear more from Laurel about preparing for change? Click here and join us for our next webinar on 20th April!

We are here, at the pointy end of social reform. For those Australian citizens who live with disability, the National Disability Insurance Scheme promises greater possibilities through improved choice and control over one’s own life. Those among us who live with disability or love someone with a disability, welcome this change.

At the same time as welcoming such a reform, there are many among us who also ponder the question about what this may mean personally, how might it look, how might it feel. Some of us see it as a trigger to wonder what it would be like to live another way? The potential stirs feelings within us like hope, anticipation, uncertainty and anxieties about future risks.

Should I, shouldn’t I, will I, won’t I, I can, I can’t.

Such emotions are completely understandable when faced with such predicaments because for a long time, people with disability have been cocooned in services that have been prescribed by others. Choice has been limited to a pre-determined menu of activities. Such circumstances inhibit the ability to think beyond one’s daily parameters.

Being leaders in our own lives

Now, the ‘big ask’ that stands before us today is throwing up major challenges. This can be due to our lack of exposure to the notion that we alone are now responsible to shape our own destiny.

While ever we are alive, change will be an inevitable and many of us will be sorely in need of some solid leadership. Not the type of leadership that permits us to follow but the type that allows us to lead.

In a time of uncertainty, we often look outside to others for the answers. But in my own experience and in my work with other families in my community, I see that we actually have what is needed to make the most out of change.

Deep understanding

To take a step into change like this (what might it be like to live another way?), transformational leadership is needed. Such leadership can only be born out of a deep understanding of the individual, for this is the instrument through which one can motivate the person to desire change.

It is crucial that any aspiration must be formed out of the person’s own genuine insight and knowledge that there is a place where they truly wish to be.  Having something to hold on to, to aspire to, is a great driver through uncertain times.

For my daughter, and her good friend, having their own home, and more than this, owning their own home, was the light that helped us move through all the uncertainty of change.

Allowing free exploration of ideas

Secondly, it seems perhaps obvious to say, but we had to match this intimacy and knowing of the person with a creative, optimistic and welcoming environment in order to achieve this outcome.

Igniting enthusiasm, selling the benefits and painting a picture of future accomplishments, I found invited participation and developed a unified theme. Creating these shared values also fosters an attitude of continual growth and mutual respect.

We are also in a very good place to bring forward the other skills needed to bring about such desires and ambitions.

Authenticity

Firstly, the ability to know the kinds of communication styles that are going to work best for the person developing their vision. Without this a clear and honest outcome will not be achieved. Secondly, working in a framework of humility and authenticity, never forgetting that the ‘leader’ works to stimulate the environment, not create the thought.

Flexibility

What I also learnt to see is that some processes capture the imagination and energy of the person, and others do not.  What we do need to learn is that it’s OK to eliminate a pathway and try again if necessary. Perhaps a different technique may invite better outcomes. Reinforce our optimism that all is not lost, we are all still on our ‘L’ plates.

Letting go

Lastly, a key trait of the ‘leader/facilitator’ is to know when to surrender the leadership and power to the person so that intellectual stimulation, individual consideration and eventual personal motivation to change the status quo can occur.

Yes, we might feel rightly worried and uncertain at the prospect of change. But we also possess the foundations, when directed clearly, that can so genuinely assist another to take control. It is these foundations we can refine and develop in order to produce the guiding light through change.

Let people own their world, be the architects of their life, let them work to change it and so become that person they wish to be. In the end, their life truly belongs to them alone.

Want to hear more from Laurel about preparing for change? Click here and join us for our next webinar!

More about Laurel:

Laurel Lambert is a parent, a guardian for several others & a representative for several more women living with the NDIS. For many years, she has advocated for people to live inclusive lives. Laurel has worked in the voluntary & paid sectors of the disability industry for over 40 years. Currently, she is the Chairperson of a carer group whose mission is to build good lives for their family member with disability.

Carolyn and her husband with her team of 5 people

A self directed approach enables me to recruit and choose my own team of staff who assist me to live in my own home.

After 20 years of independent living and using a wide range of services, staff and models of support, I believe the success of my care is based on the quality of the relationships I have with my staff and the work I do to make this work for me.

With the right team you can work with people who understand a ‘give and take’ approach, are flexible and have the will to help you solve problems.

Get the best from your team

It’s essential to be clear about your needs. Honesty is the best policy.  And be clear about what you expect from them. Ambiguity is not helpful and usually leads to miscommunication.In addition to being verbally clear, use a responsibility checklist, or more formal contract.

Model the behaviour you expect from them. If you tell them you will cover their shift then cover it.

It takes skills in negotiation and sometimes creative thinking if shifts need to be swapped or changed in emergencies. For instance, staff contact me directly if they are sick or have another problem getting to their shift. I can then assess the situation, and I generally know the commitments and schedules of each staff person. I may offer a bonus if it is very late notice. If I get stuck I have the numbers of a few agencies that are 24 hour contactable who could find staff.

I rarely rely on family to fill in. Unlike the bad old days when I was constantly getting stuck without support, busting for the toilet or missing out on meals.

Keep the right people

Once you have created a great team it takes work to maintain it. Just like anything maintenance and servicing cannot be overlooked otherwise the whole car will start to shake.

Over the years I have developed a strong team culture. I have had little turnover and I feel very positive about the people in my team and I know they feel positive in return.

One of the things I think I do well is to pay attention to people and pay attention to the relationship. I understand that it is a person’s job and that supporting me is just one aspect of their lives. So I take a really wholistic approach and this has served me well. I put a lot of emphasis on relationship, celebration, positive feedback, focussing on their strengths and keeping them well informed.

While I still need to step in on occasion and address problems with team members, I have found these strategies have lessened the difficulties.

I’m really looking forward to sharing my top 8 tips with you that you can use to create a positive team culture.

Want to hear more?

Carolyn is one of our guest speakers at our next online session on February 26th 2015.

Click here to find out more and register.

a group brainstorms with a person with disability

Lyne Mear is a consultant in Human Resources, Industrial Relations and Employees Relations. Her focus is creating work places that are self-generating, solution oriented and enjoyable.

One of the questions I am often asked by people who really want to be front and centre of their supports is

“How can I get more of the good stuff and less of the big service tasks like managing people and doing rosters and paperwork?”

Many families also ask me “How do I get support workers to see what I see, to think ahead and to really do what’s needed?”

I am very pleased to share some of my experience in methods and strategies that will help you develop a positive, flexible and engaged team culture.

Paradoxically I have found that the more people are asked to report and be accountable up a line of management, the less they see things and really take responsibility. The only way to do this is to have practice in taking the responsibility, to really know ‘the buck stops with me on this issue’.

A self managing team

One of the solutions I have worked with people on, is to set up a self managing team. This is a team of workers operating in a manner that requires little top down management. There is still the need for strong governance and oversight, and connection with people, but less of the stuff that takes you away from core business in running your life and your supports.

Self managing teams work best where there are teams of small numbers that are committed to an outcome that is ‘greater’ than the individuals’ self-interest.   Teams working in social welfare, social conscience areas are ideally suited to a self-managed team system.

This idea started many years ago when I was working as a manager of a start-up disability service whose aim was to provide support for independent living for people with disabilities. I was asked to come up with a service provision model for a woman with acquired brain injury from a horrific motor vehicle accident. I needed to find a way of providing support 24/7 that was affordable and also encompassed the principals that my organisation had committed to.  This woman’s parents had the view that she needed to live independently in her own home as an adult. One of the founding principles was that people have the right to live and develop freely.  I believe very strongly in the human right to develop and grow in our own journey.  I still believe this today.

We managed both these things by setting up a self-reliant and self-organising team.  This structure held the principals of self-determination; encouraged the team to self-determine and was the most economical.  Little outlay is involved in the administration and coordination of the arrangement and the team and the person being supported have the opportunity to learn and grow in the arrangement.

That structure has been in operation now for 20 odd years and has been an amazing learning experience for me as well as all those who have been involved in the journey. I am still involved with this woman and her family. For the woman I believe it has provided the best opportunity to live a real life that could have been provided.

I am a consultant in human resources, industrial relations and employees relations, working in some pretty big organisations, and I take these principles wherever I go. I have also taken these principles to work with other families.

The key components

The components of a self managing team are:

1. communication – things must be discussed;
2. openness – things must be discussed;
3. willingess to listen and understand other points of view – things must be discussed;
4. tolerance – other viewpoints need to be allowed to be and these must be discussed;
5. clear vision – an understanding of what is desired must be obvious and understood by all;
6. collaboration – the whole concept is based on the premise of working together;
7. flexibility – there are many ways to achieve the vision. The joy and creativity of working in such a team and to experience the differing ways is amazing;
8. diversity – adds enormously to the creativity of the arrangement;
9. and a sense of purpose – comes back to the vision.

The first steps

Setting-up the arrangement is the biggest and most important piece of work.

The most important parts of the set-up are:

1. engaging and enrolling the team in a clear vision;
2. developing really clear boundaries and expectations within which they will operate;
3. being able to let go but maintain those boundaries
4. developing the systems to monitor;
5. and working with people to move from having things set out for them, to taking responsibility. This is because mostly people are not used to being able to self-manage and being held accountable for the consequences of their actions. Most people are used to reporting to supervisors.

The benefits

A team that is self managing well can do things like take responsibility for their rostering, communication and self-organise amongst themselves and develop a common purpose. They may be delegated authority around the day-to-day aspects of the person’s life and learn to think forward and dream into the person’s life, and organise to achieve those things with the person.

The benefits are that people are more able to enjoy their life or enjoy their family role with the person rather than being the ‘manager’ all the time.

I’m looking forward to sharing more strategies with you.

Want to hear more from Lyne? Click here to join our online session on February 26th 2015.

A man with friends and support workers

Our previous blog on this issue started ‘at the end’ or on tips to get clear on the purpose of paid support. We recommended this as a first step in successful recruitment. For starters, working out purpose can then really help to nail the characteristics you are looking for in people. Once you know the kind of people you are looking for, then it is far easier to figure out where to look for them. After that, you can think about the best methods to reach those people.

Put together, this is a 4 step process of WHAT (purpose) WHO (characteristics), WHERE and HOW (methods to recruit)

So in this piece we will focus on Characteristics. That is, being clear about WHO it is you are looking for.

Start by thinking about the importance to you of any, or all of these categories below.

What makes the person tick – personal qualities, values and vision

Many people say this is the most important thing to think through. This is about the kind of person you are looking for. It is always better when the person shares your vision. So what are your values and vision?

Skills & attributes

These are abilities that show the person can apply knowledge in a practical way to get something done. This could include work skills they have learned elsewhere that they can use in this job. These might be things such as leadership, communication, problem solving, initiative & enterprise, team work, planning & organising.

Technical and professional skills

What do you hope they come with?

Do professional skills and qualifications matter to the role?

What training do you want them to undertake?

Shared interests and hobbies

Depending on the purpose of the role, shared interest might be a definite pre-requisite. No point wanting to get involved in your local indie music scene, for example, and not seeking someone who is going to lap that up and know what to do and how to be in that context.

Even if the purpose of the role is not as specific as this, looking for commonality of interest makes life easier. Liking the people who support you is very important.

Click here to read how Carolyn Campbell-McLean creates her dream team.

 Matching purpose and characteristics in a (real life) example

Robbie is 27 and about to move into his own apartment in the city for the first time. The apartment is being rented from an extended family member who wanted to help by offering this opportunity. The vision is for Robbie to have a housemate. The apartment has lots of great qualities and some down sides. For example, while it is two bedroom it is quite small. Robbie and his immediate family decided that they couldn’t let the opportunity go, but they are worried about whether living with someone will be sustainable. This is also because while much of what support Robbie needs is known, a lot is also to be discovered. Robbie will have some additional paid support workers at different times, but the housemate role is really crucial.

Robbie is a conscientious man who likes to please people. He is a gentleman. He has an incredible memory for people, places, events and television shows. He also loves classical music, old movies, walking, trains and boats (especially old ones). He works, attends a day program and also volunteers. He can feel quite anxious at times, although he doesn’t want to be, and benefits from patience, empathy, people who see his potential beyond this and provide guidance in times when he is struggling to see past the anxiety.

Robbie’s support team decided to create a 6 month paid live-in role. The purpose of the role is to

• Help Robbie adjust and provide companionship – enjoying time together and looking out for each other
• Create an inviting home – joining with Robbie to create a pleasant, and comfortable home together, sharing meals, thinking about ensuring that Robbie’s day-to-day home life is prepared and planned for with tasks such as food and shopping and ensuring that the home is well cared for
• Provide mentoring in some areas of home life
• Build understanding of the longer term support structure – join with his family and support crew understand what kind of support Robbie needs and when across the week. In the longer term, when might a housemate have a role, when family and friends and when might paid support workers have a role?
• Building understanding of the future housemate role – join with his family and support crew understand what a longer term (subsidised) housemate role might look like. Contribute to answer this question: ‘how will it work best for a housemate and Robbie ongoing?’

What do you think are the values, qualities, skills and shared interests needed?

What kind of person would be good in this role? Try and visualise this person.

Now you can start to think about WHERE you might find such a person and what methods you might use to attract them (HOW).

Want to learn more? Click here to join our next online session on December 9th to learn successful recruitment strategies from people in the know!

Click here to hear what a participant has said about our sessions.

The right people are more likely to step forward when you are really clear on the purpose of paid support. Additionally, people are more likely to stick around when they are fully informed of the expectations and when they understand and share your vision. Unspoken or hidden expectations tend to lead to disappointment and to unnecessary turnover.

Start at the end

Asking the question, ‘What is the end result I am looking for?’ is a really great way to start thinking about purpose.

The importance of such a question can be revealed in exploring this scenario. Consider someone who likes gardening. You might consider matching paid support to this interest and conclude that finding a gardener is the way to go. Taking some time to consider purpose, however, can reveal some interesting differences. If the purpose of the role is to build a garden, finding a gardener might work. But if purpose is to increase opportunities for connection to others through this interest, a person only skilled in gardening may not cut it (excuse the pun).

Here are some other ideas to assist your thinking.

Think about how others get the task done

Ask: how do other people get this thing done or achieve this?
Firstly, think about the task that needs to be done. Now think about how that same or similar issue is solved by other people. How do others in our community get this kind of thing done?

This gives us some great clues on what we want to model and replicate. Sometimes we tend to jump to service and paid responses first. But asking this question allows us to take a breather and see if there are other solutions we could put our energy into (the time and energy we would be using to find paid assistance or service solutions).

So give these scenarios some consideration in light of this:

1. You’ve lost track of time and now your garden is in need of a makeover.
2. You need your lawn mowed regularly

• you have never tried mowing a lawn before and aren’t sure if you could do it.
• you could learn but you aren’t interested and prefer to dedicate time elsewhere
• you aren’t able to mow your lawn

What are different solutions to these scenarios?

Generally the more formal, regular and structured the task is, the more likely it is in our society, to seek a paid solution. But a lot also depends on our family culture, background, gender, the place you live, income, age…… So think about what makes sense to you.

I know in my life, I would be more inclined to turn my dishevelled garden into a social opportunity, provide food and drink or even offer to assist friends with something in exchange for their help. Our lawn is large. I can learn to mow but I’m not interested in mowing. However, this is not something I think is reasonable to ask a friend or neighbour to do on a regular basis. Sure – collect my mail, feed my cat for a couple of days. But not mow the lawn regularly. A neighbour might offer because we have built a reciprocal relationship, but this is different to me asking. Additionally our living expenses mean that getting someone else to do this regularly is not possible. So I need to mow my lawn. But you might have a different response that fits your culture, family, income, community etc! It’s the process of thinking through that is important.

This kind of thinking helps us understand the place of paid support, whether it is actually needed, and also helps us think about the place of informal relationships and whether we could focus energy on this rather than on paid support.

So ask yourself: what can a paid person bring that natural support might not bring? How can paid support add value to what I already have? (not take away or cut off an opportunity for growth of other kinds of relationships)

Regularity, structure and formal teaching are some examples of answers to these questions.

Some other examples are:

• Social connection/bridge building into different parts of a community
• Building a fuller picture of who the person is: helping the person learn more about themselves, trying different activities, exploration and trial. This can be important for people whose interests are unknown or unexplored
• Learning new skills
• Personal care
• Role modelling and mentoring – behaviours, feelings, thinking
• Generating new ideas – creative, innovative, considered ideas
• Team development – developing the cohesion and functionality of a team
• Work or business development

Clarity on role and purpose really helps us to hone the characteristics we are looking for in people. What qualities, skills and interests are we looking for in people? Let’s look at that next.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on successful techniques.

If you want to learn more,  join us for our upcoming webinar on December 9 2014!

Click here to hear what a participant has said about our sessions.

Stereotypes are mental slavery

“Some stories enhance life; others degrade it. So we must be careful about the stories we tell, about the way we define ourselves and other people.” (Burton Blatt)

NPR is an American non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of hundreds of public radio stations. Three days ago, it decided to publish this image on it’s Facebook page. It gathered thousands of comments, so they contacted the photographer and wrote a follow-up piece about why they decided to publish the image.

We were told that the photographer, Andrew Nixon, shot this image in an effort to show how being caregivers affects the ageing parents.

SBS Insight then posted it to their page, again with many hundreds of comments.

That this is an image of a father who deeply loves his son, I agree.

That this image portrays a reality that remains largely invisible in our society, I agree.

That this image is likely well intentioned, I believe you.

But that, because of these things, it was OK for the photographer to have published this image, I disagree.

I want to try and explain why in the hope of opening up a different perspective. I say different, because the vast majority of online commenters have responded to this image positively.  The vast majority have agreed that this image was fine to publish because it shows love, it shows a reality, and because consent was provided by the parents.

It’s difficult to write about this without seeming to lay judgement on the father (or the family). It’s true I know nothing about either of these people. But neither do most of the people looking and commenting on this image. None of us do. And this is important because imagery like this is so powerful and sends messages about both the young man in this photo as well as people beyond the image.

And so this is the first reason I don’t think this image should have been published. It confirms, not disproves stereotypes.  That’s why I chose the image for this blog, because it links firmly to others arguing similarly – what does it do for the continent of Africa for continued portrayal of people begging, emaciated and desperate?

I believe that any benefit provided by opening up discussion around the issue of carers who are ageing is outweighed by this. In fact, by confirming stereotypes I think this image has served to promote the needs of one party at the expense of another.

Some of the stereotypes about people with disability I think this image re-inforces:

Honourable burden

Forever child-like

Non sexual

Incapable

Paulo Friere wrote in Pedagogy of the Oppressed,  “The oppressor shows solidarity with the oppressed only when he stops regarding the oppressed as an abstract category and sees them as persons who have been unjustly dealt with, deprived of their voice….when he stops making pious, sentimental and individualistic gestures and risks an act of love”.

One of the outcomes of confirming stereotypes is that we limit possibility for people.  People that we don’t even know!

And without knowing anything about this young man, I would argue that we are largely left with a sense of greatly diminished capacity.

But is this reality? When we see people in this way, the possibilities for them have already been limited.

Can this young man learn and grow? Can he communicate? Can he reciprocate? Can he have a positive future? The answer to all these questions, even without knowing him, is yes, because to be human is to have these capacities. Yet when we see images like this, perhaps we wonder that maybe the answer is ‘no’. Imagery like this doesn’t help us move past those in-built hesitations about people with disability. It doesn’t challenge us in a way that brings new understandings about people, that smashes the limits of our preconceptions. We think we are seeing something new. But unfortunately we are actually just seeing more of  the same.

People with disabilities too have something to say about the issues surrounding ageing carers. We need imagery and discussion that illuminates all perspectives on this issue and doesn’t sacrifice one at the expense of another.

When we use images like this, we serve to make distance the continued norm. And by doing that we actually weaken the strategies for inclusion and acceptance. This goes against what a movement of people with disabilities and their allies and families want.  With all our might we want people to be accepted (because rejection is the norm), to be included in their communities (because exclusion is the norm), to be seen for their full self (because most experience is about being seen as the sum total of a ‘label’).

There are great numbers of people who, each day, need any number of very practical tasks done with and for them. They need assistance with lifting, bathing, eating, toileting, transport and mobility, drinking, hygiene, communication etc etc (and all deeply desire for these tasks to be performed with the care that can be seen in this father’s eyes). But these people are also university students, school students, lawyers, government bureaucrats, community development workers, workers of all kinds, worshippers, volunteers, partners, and parents themselves.

When we see images like this, what kind of connection does it establish? Can we imagine ourselves studying with this young man and inviting him for a drink in the cafeteria, or saying yes to offering him a job should someone ask us? Can we imagine our children being friends with him? Can we imagine him as being anything other than cared-for for the rest of his life?

Yes ‘caring’ can regularly be completely shithouse –  tired parents who have cared in this way for years and years and years. Undervalued, un-resourced, taken-for-granted and invisible in our neighbourhoods and our minds. As a sister, I do sometimes (it’s hard to go there) think about the prospect of caring for my brother in his old age (and my old age) and quite probably his final days. What if he outlives me? Yes, I’ve sensed the edge, the unexpressed wish. And one day it will be as real for me as it is for my parents now.

But caring is also a deeply paradoxical and often beautiful experience. I don’t believe you can keep doing the shithouse without the experience – even for the briefest of moments – of the other side. The things you get to see and know deep within your bones about that person because of the deep connection that caring has brought about. The world might not think the person capable of much, but your caring experience tells you otherwise. And because you know this, you keep fighting and you keep caring.

If I hadn’t been helping my brother in the bathroom many years ago, I would never have experienced the first moment I saw him look in the mirror and smile at himself. What a profound moment amongst the banality of caring tasks! The world may think that it is better not to be disabled, but my brother thinks differently. It will power me for the rest of my life.

There have been cherished times with my brother when I have asked ‘who is the carer and who is the cared-for?’ Moments when I have felt terribly down and upset. Now my brother’s disability means he is unlikely to have grasped the complexity of the issue, but he has certainly sensed the emotionality, the feeling coming from me. He has reached out and loved me tenderly in those moments. When I travelled overseas for a long time, apparently he used to go to the top of the stairs at mum’s place and look down to the floor below where my bedroom was, thinking of me in his own way.

When we always portray people as the recipients of care, we again set up an us and them. One can only be the carer and one can only ever be the cared-for.

But I believe relationship and “…attachment arises from the human capacity to move others and be moved by them. Being dependent then no longer means being helpless, powerless and without control: rather, it signifies a conviction that one is able to have an effect on others, as well as the recognition that the interdependence of attachment empowers both the self and the other, not one at the other’s expense.” (Gilligan, 1986)

And this is the point. It is not empowerment if we sacrifice the rights and interests of another party in the process.

Here is an example of an image and an article that portrays things quite differently, while still bringing us into awareness of the issues.