In this episode Nicky speaks with Alice Lans the CEO of Noah’s Inclusion Services to better understand how allied health disability services support functional outcomes for children with disability. Alice is a Speech Pathologist by training and now leads a dedicated team of allied health professionals, support workers and early childhood educators at Noah’s all of whom are working together to support functional and developmental outcomes for kids with disability.

Alice talks about the importance of providing “the right support at the right place and the right time” to ensure the best outcomes. Alice explains how collaboration is key to positive results and how her team supports families to understand the goals of their child’s therapy and to assist them to work in partnership to implement therapy supports through a coaching model. Combining the expertise of the allied health professional with the family’s knowledge and care for their child ensures the greatest success.

This collaboration and goal setting is being challenged with the current price settings for NDIS therapies having remained on hold since 2019 and some now even being reduced this year, together with a significant 50% reduction in travel charges that a therapist can make.

“Being able to be where the participant works, plays, spends time and learns is very important” explains Alice, warning that the continued pricing reductions are making this increasingly difficult for allied health services.

Unfortunately, impacts will be felt the most by those already most disadvantaged in terms of people who are isolated, rural or remote participants and those that do not drive. Alice talks about how this pricing situation is forcing already stretched Allied Health providers into “an ethical and financial dilemma”, where they need to choose to operate at a loss or to exit from their services those where the current travel situation is not viable. Alice argues that these services are not only reasonable and necessary but in fact “essential” and that cuts to these services will seriously disadvantage children with disability.

Additionally, as Alice explains, there are a cohort of people with disability for whom allied health services are keeping them healthy and out of acute care health settings and hospitals so that the return on investment for these allied health services, which may appear high cost, are actually a very wise investment.

This is an important conversation that explains a complex issue in a way that everyone can understand.

· Find out more about the great work that Noah’s Inclusion Services are doing here: Homepage - Noahs

Acknowledgement of Country

Community Industry Group' podcast is recorded on beautiful Dharawal Country, and we acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land, and their Elders.

We acknowledge and respect their continuing culture, the world’s oldest living culture, and the contribution they make to the life of this region and our country.

We acknowledge that we live and work on Aboriginal land and recognise the strength, resilience and capacity of Aboriginal people.

Music Credit:
"Jarvic 8" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/