EBL_Newsletter_Spring_2020_DIGITAL | Page 10

Support Coordination ‘ Conflict of Interest ’

On 30th September , 2020 EBL Disability Services wrote to Support

Coordination participants , nominees , carers and family to advise our difficult decision to cease providing Support Coordination services from 30th October 2020 . This included those individuals and families who use our Supported Independent Living ( SIL ), Short Term Accommodation ( STA / Respite ) and Day Options programs . This decision has been driven by a number of factors but most importantly due to the recent government announcement , which addresses the potential conflicts of interest between participants and their SIL providers who also provide Support Coordination services .
Since the inception of the Support Coordination service in 2015 , we have strived to minimise the risk of the potential conflicts of interest . However , this arrangement is still perceived by the NDIA as a concern because each Support Coordinator has a significant influence over the way a participant implements their plan . In particular , the recently released SIL Consultation Paper states that : ‘ The NDIA has found high variability among providers in terms of the degree of independence between the two functions , and it is unclear whether participants have true choice and control when their SIL provider is also their Support Coordinator .’
We recognise the importance of each participant experiencing a planned and coordinated transition from Enable Support Coordination to a new provider . Therefore , we committed to a seamless transition for the participants .
We did this by :
( 1 ) Providing a list of the available Support Coordinators who have specific knowledge and skills to assist you to achieve your goals .
( 2 ) Assisting each participant to coordinate with a potential new provider if they requested our assistance .
( 3 ) Sending all relevant information / reports to the new provider to complete a handover where consent was provided .
We sincerely thank participants and their families for their support over the past 5 years since the EBL Support Coordination service commenced . We hope through this period the service provided value in terms of transitioning you from the old Dept . Communities and Social Inclusion ( DCSI ), Grant Funded services to the new independent world of the NDIS .

We lead by example , treating all in our community with genuine respect and equity .

10 EBL QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER