Nursing registration groups

I want to confirm if a Registered Nurse can provide training to workers for high-intensity supports. Does the organisation need to be registered for 0114 Community Nursing Care to do this? Or is this a separate requirement?

A registered provider who wishes to bill for disability-related health supports from nursing personnel needs to be registered for 0114 Community Nursing Care. For detailed guidance on what can be billed against a participant's plan, please see the NDIS webpages for pricing arrangements and their catalogue of disability related supports.

Whether training is claimable against an NDIS plan will depend on if it is general disability worker training, which is considered a business expense and not claimable, or training to develop the skills of a support team to meet an individual's support requirements. This could be claimable with the participant's agreement and if it aligns with NDIS pricing arrangements.

Participant Emergency and Disaster Management plans

We are rolling out plans for our participants who receive SIL. We have day programs attended by participants not enrolled in our SIL service. The question is: do we need to develop individual participant Emergency and Disaster Management plans for these participants?

Emergency and Disaster Management plans for individuals should be in place that are proportionate to their individual risk.

The NDIS practice standard for Emergency and Disaster Management for registered providers includes “planning that ensures that the risks to the health, safety and wellbeing of participants that may arise in an emergency or disaster are considered and mitigated, and ensures the continuity of supports critical to the health, safety and wellbeing of participants in an emergency or disaster.”

Planning should include measures to ensure “continuity of supports that are critical to the safety, health and wellbeing of each participant before, during and after an emergency or disaster.”

These measures include:

• preparing for and responding to the emergency or disaster
• making changes to participant supports
• adapting and rapidly responding to changes to participant supports and to other interruptions
• communicating changes to participant supports to workers, participants and their support networks.

It is your responsibility to develop emergency and disaster management plans, consult with participants and their support networks about the plans, and put the plans in place. The plans should guide the governing body in their response to an emergency. There should be mechanisms to test the plans and adjust them for the kind of emergency or disaster. They should be regularly reviewed with the consultation of participants and their support networks. Throughout, workers, participants and their support networks should be informed, and every worker should be trained to follow through with the plans.

NDS has produced a comprehensive range of Emergency and Disaster Management resources that include overviews, tip sheets, and checklists in pdf and Word versions based on the standard.

The standard talks about plans being made in consultation with participants but does not stipulate that individual plans must be in place. However, development of Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEP) is good practice, and for many people with disability, especially those who need extra assistance during evacuations, a PEEP is imperative.

For these people, a PEEP forms part of a specialised escape strategy and their needs should be considered in evacuation or relocation. They could need mobility aids, service animals, assistive technology or medications. It is also important to recognise that individuals might face multiple disabilities and other challenges, such as language or communication barriers.

Evacuation plans may also account for the differences between people with permanent disability and those with temporary disability, such as someone recovering from surgery.

The Australian Standard AS 3745-2010, “Planning for Emergencies in Facilities,” also gives guidelines for ensuring the safety of people within buildings, structures and workplaces during emergencies.

You might also look at the WorkSafe Australia website and their resources on creating emergency plans.

Provisional registration

We have just registered to become an NDIS provider. We are at the stage of our certification assessment and are well-prepared.

We haven’t taken clients yet, so our certification is provisional. We are confused about what this means and whether we will have to undergo another assessment once we acquire clients.

According to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Quality and Safeguards Commission, a provisional audit is conducted when a new provider is entering the NDIS market but does not yet have any participants for the particular registration class. Here are the key points related to provisional audits:

Purpose: Provisional audits are carried out to assess the provider’s compliance with NDIS requirements and standards as they enter the NDIS system.

Qualified Certification Decision: If the provider subsequently registers with the Commissioner after the provisional audit, a second audit is required. This second audit is subject to a qualified certification decision.

Further Stage Two Audit: Once the provider has commenced service delivery, a further stage two audit (without modifications) may be necessary.

Registration Conditions: While waiting for a qualified certification decision, the Commissioner may impose conditions on the registration of a person as an NDIS provider, as outlined in section 73G of the Act.

Certification Decision: After the audit, the approved quality auditor advises the Commissioner whether a full certification decision is appropriate. If not, the registration of the NDIS provider may continue to be subject to relevant registration conditions based on the qualified certification decision.

In summary, provisional audits ensure that new NDIS providers meet the standards and requirements before they fully participate in the scheme.

Agency Staff for SIL Supports

I work for a service that provides SIL supports. When our staff are unavailable, we engage agency staff. Could you please advise me what HR records we need to keep for agency staff? How do we demonstrate that agency staff have the necessary documents?

When engaging agency staff, providers need to ensure staff have met the same screening and minimum training as other staff. You need written assurance from the agency that their staff have undergone worker screening and completed the worker orientation module and any other minimum requirements for a SIL worker.

Background checks: Agency staff should have undergone background checks, including criminal history checks and the NDIS worker screening check.

Qualifications and training: Agency staff should give you evidence of their relevant qualifications and training to ensure they have the skills and knowledge to provide quality services. This is especially important for specialist supports, such as those in the high intensity skills descriptors or for carrying out behaviour support plans.

Working with children or vulnerable people: If agency staff work with children, they must have a valid Working with Children clearance.

Health and safety checks: Agency staff may need to provide evidence of health and safety checks, including immunisations and health assessments.

As part of your contract with staffing agencies, you should ensure that they keep thorough records of these checks for accountability and transparency. You should be able to access these easily and you may request a copy for your own files. Their records can be examined as part of your audit process. An auditor may request a sampling of worker files to show that your workers have the right documentation.

Claim processing delays

We have recently been told that the NDIA has announced steps to strengthen the NDIS by reducing fraud and non-compliant behaviour. This advice says that, from March 2024, the NDIA will take longer to review and approve claims made by plan managers and providers. Claims that previously took a day to process will now take two to three business days, with some payments potentially taking up to 10 days. When a claim is under review by the NDIA, they may request further information before approving the claim and making payment.

Is NDS aware of this announcement by the NDIA and can you give further details?

The NDIA's latest advice on this is set out in the March 2024 Provider eNewsletter, where it describes a focus on duplicate claims and that they "may take more time to check some claims before they are paid."

Throughout the national rollout of PACE, the NDIA have advised that valid claims for organisations with My Provider relationships will be paid within two to three days and valid claims for organisations without My Provider relationships could take up to ten days. Also, claims that are reviewed and subsequently disputed will be on hold until the right information is received.

The eNewsletter does not change this longstanding messaging.

However, our interpretation of this recent advice is that the NDIA are on the lookout for duplicate claims and possible duplicates will be reviewed. For My Providers, this review process will still mean that valid claims will be paid within two to three business days.

NDS will continue to monitor feedback from members about the NDIA abiding by their payment terms. If you have any evidence of payment system delays, please contact us.