With the NDIS rollout since July 2017, its taken time for the NDIA to contact eligible families for a planning meeting regarding funding for their child through the NDIS. For many families, the process of how the NDIS works is still very unclear and some families expect the NDIA planner to be able to provide them the guidance. However, the planner does not actually know your child, as such to expect them to tell you what your child needs to have to help them achieve their goal is likely to end up in disappointment. No one truly knows your child like you do, however, as a parent you don’t know all the possible therapy or equipment options available for your child. So how do you ask for what you don’t know is possible or available? This is where your child’s existing therapist should be able to assist you with advice on the possible therapies, intervention and equipment available and suitable for your child. If your child with special needs, has never been assessed by any therapist, then you need to get in contact with My Favourite Physio and let us help you!

As a Paediatric Physiotherapist, my aim is to help children achieve their maximum potential through physiotherapy. To do so, we need to have early and intensive intervention using evidence based techniques. Every child and family is unique; as such the strategies that we have to use to achieve each child’s goals will be different. For some families, it is more suitable to have weekly physiotherapy sessions, while for others intensive school holiday programs fit into their family schedule better. The ability for each child to achieve their goals is proportionately related to the amount of practice and intervention received. The more regular and intensive physiotherapy a child gets, the more successful they are in achieving their goals. Therefore, in terms of the NDIS, it is important for each child to be able to receive optimal funding to access optimal intensity of physiotherapy. To help families achieve optimal funding, I have been having discussions with individual families about goals for their child and then writing up individualized plans for them so that they have a succinct plan stating the goals they want to achieve, the strategies to achieve the goals and the cost required to achieve these goals.

So I am really excited to share the recent success story with our NDIS plan for Master C. 10 year old, Master C only started physiotherapy with My Favourite Physio 3 months ago. Prior to that period, Master C unfortunately only received sporadic physiotherapy intervention from various different organizations. Master C also unfortunately missed out on receiving the Better Start for Children with Disability Funding when he was less than 7 years old. By the time I met Master C, he had bilateral knee contractures, and although he was able to walk with both hands held, it was struggle and backbreaking effort on his parents to do so. We commenced on regular physiotherapy intervention including a stretching, strengthening and gait re-training program. We also carried out walker trials for him to get a suitable walker for use while at school. This would enable the school staff to help him walk safely without backbreaking effort on their part. Then suddenly, his parents were contacted by NDIA to have a planning meeting for him. So we very promptly put together a NDIS plan for physiotherapy goals and intervention for him in time for his planning meeting. The planning meeting was a success and within a week, his parents received the NDIS plan for him, which included a satisfactory funding budget for the next 12 months for physiotherapy intervention. The funding budget allocated for therapy is almost triple what the current Better Start Funding budget is for 12months, so it’s a fantastic win for Master C who up until now had never been able to access to optimal consistent therapy due to financial limitations.

Now with the ability to have regular optimal physiotherapy intervention, I look forward with great excitement to help Master C achieve his goal of independent walking with an aid in the next 12 months, and in fact will push the boundaries to see if we can get to the point of walking independently without an aid!

If you are waiting for an NDIS planning meeting for your child, and would love to get a great outcome like Master C that would open doors to greater possibilities, we would love to help you! Ring (02) 9790 4233 to make an appointment with our clinic today and find out how our Paediatric Physiotherapist can help your child!