A core component of support coordination is building the capacity and capability of your clients to make their own decisions about how they achieve their NDIS goals. That requires an understanding of how to foster self-determination in others.
The trouble is that linking clients to providers, monitoring budgets, and assessing the quality of supports being provided are all time-consuming. Carving out time to coach your clients to take a leading role in managing these activities can be challenging.
It makes sense to inject all aspects of your client interactions with a capacity-building approach, and we explain how below.
What drives improved capacity?
At the heart of capacity-building is strengthening your client’s skills and instilling self-belief.
When capacity-building is successful, you'll see clients who are self-motivated to take control of their plan and life. You'll see clients who can adapt to change and unforeseen issues more readily.
Support coordinators can build this level of confidence and resilience in two ways:
- Practical instruction on how to navigate services and plans, which provides a blueprint for clients to follow
- Empowering people to trust in themselves by providing encouragement, learning opportunities, and recognising their growth.
Keep in mind that this capacity-building effort will often need to encompass a client’s family and carers as well, but the focus should always be on participant-led choice and control.
Top 5 tips for improving your client's capacity
Developing others’ capabilities is an exercise in patience. Creating the conditions for people to learn and grow requires restraining one’s instinct to maximise efficiency by doing it yourself.
Gauge
Gauge the client's current understanding of specific NDIS terminology, processes, and limitations, and where there are gaps, provide clear definitions and explanations. Do they know what 'reasonable and necessary' actually means? Wielding language is a powerful way to change how we perceive our place in the world.
Show
Show them step-by-step how you evaluate support providers, use the resources the NDIA provides, such as checklists, and weigh up competing priorities. Wherever possible, use questions from your client as teachable moments and demonstrate your research and problem-solving techniques.
Encourage
Encourage clients to express themselves and ask what they want. Conversations with clients should always include questions about their views and preferences. Practice active listening—listen to understand and acknowledge your client's feelings before responding. Help your client tease out all the options—narrowing down why a choice is not viable is an important skill to develop.
Reassure
Reassure clients that you're there for support if they take a risk and it doesn't turn out how they expected. Being alone to navigate supports or deal with the consequences of a decision may be a daunting prospect. Talk about decisions they've made, good and not so good—to reinforce the positive behaviours and decision-making skills they applied, and to reflect on how they can do better next time.
Connect your clients
Connect your clients with effective supports to develop their relationship-building and community participation skills. This can impact their overall capability and faith in themselves. For instance, using Mable to find the ideal support worker to assist with daily living and social activities such as calendar management or engaging in a hobby that offers a sense of mastery and camaraderie.
By following these tips, you can help your clients feel like an informed 'insider' who knows how the system functions, and feels safe enough to act independently so they can begin to advocate for themselves.
Is capacity-building counterproductive for coordinators?
Capacity-building may be a long-term exercise, depending on the client’s starting point. Embedding these practices into your day-to-day work with clients won't necessarily make your role obsolete immediately.
In addition to giving participants the gift of greater confidence and independence, there are multiple benefits for support coordinators, such as:
- Fewer unfair expectations and conflicts about the outcomes that can be achieved as clients gain a better understanding of what you do and the variables involved.
- Reduced admin, ad hoc work and repetition as you gradually increase a client's knowledge of the fundamental parts of managing a plan and service providers.
- Ability to prioritise more urgent, complex client needs across your caseload as some clients are empowered to manage more things independently.
- Opportunities for deeper and more nuanced discussions about what a client's future could look like and how to get there—more space for more thoughtful decisions.
Ultimately, helping clients and their networks build independence is one of the key roles of a support coordinator.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with your dedicated Account Manager.
