ABSTRACT

The transition of the early childhood intervention (ECI) sector to the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) offers new choices to families about which services best meet their children’s needs. The quality of the transition to the Scheme has important implications for children with developmental delay or disability and their families, especially as personalisation schemes, such as the NDIS, can often extend existing social inequalities. This research therefore applied a social ecological model to understand families’ experiences in the transition. It included a two time-point study in the state of New South Wales with surveys and interviews with families and service providers. It found a wide range of experiences. Many families experienced delays and communication problems transitioning to the NDIS, especially disadvantaged families. Positive experiences were associated with higher capacity for system navigation within the family and their supporting communities and service providers. The findings indicate that increased social inequities may arise if risks are not managed during the transition to NDIS and during the longer-term implementation of good practice principles for ECI across all services types.

• IMPLICATIONS

• A holistic approach that links families’ experiences and needs to community resources, local specialist service providers, and wider systems is required to build family capacity for system navigation.

• Social workers’ roles in the disability sector need to accommodate culturally appropriate information gathering and sharing, funding management, and advocacy.

• Social workers are well-placed to influence policy implications that relate to the inequalities in disability support during early childhood intervention.

摘要

早期儿童干预 (ECI) 部门向澳大利亚国家残疾保险计划 (NDIS) 的过渡为家庭提供了关于哪些服务最能满足其子女需求的新选择。向该计划过渡的质量对发育迟缓或残疾儿童及其家庭具有重要影响，特别是因为个性化计划，例如 NDIS，通常会扩大现有的社会不平等。因此，本研究应用社会生态模型来了解家庭在转型中的经历。它包括在新南威尔士州进行的两个时间点研究，其中包括对家庭和服务提供者的调查和访谈。它发现了广泛的经验。许多家庭在过渡到 NDIS 时遇到了延误和沟通问题，尤其是弱势家庭。积极的经验与家庭及其支持社区和服务提供者内更高的系统导航能力相关。调查结果表明，如果在向 NDIS 过渡期间以及在所有服务类型的 ECI 良好实践原则的长期实施期间不管理风险，则可能会加剧社会不平等。

• 影响

• 需要一种将家庭的经验和需求与社区资源、当地专业服务提供商和更广泛的系统联系起来的整体方法，以建立家庭系统导航能力。

• 社会工作者在残疾部门的角色需要适应文化上适当的信息收集和共享、资金管理和宣传。

• 社会工作者可以很好地影响与幼儿干预期间残疾支持不平等相关的政策含义。