A regular newsletter for guardians in NSW

ISSN NUMBER 1836-5485

LAUNCHING THE NEW WALLET CARD!

The theme for this edition of Onguard is, Power Up! We will be powering you up with as much information so you will know where to turn for help if

things go a little pear-shaped. In this edition we will also be launching the new wallet card. GETTING RECOGNISED AS A LEGAL GUARDIANMany guardians contact the Private Guardian Support Unit (PGSU) reporting difficulties in having their legal authority recognised. In a past issue of Onguard we asked private guardians to contact us with examples of situations where their legal authority and role was not recognised by a range of service providers, health professionals and government departments. YOUR RESPONSE We received a lot of feedback from guardians. Two common issues were: 1. services providers or hospitals taking action before the guardian could make a legally valid decision2. guardians being refused or denied information that would help them to make decisions.

The role of a guardian can be stressful on any given day, however, this stress can be exacerbated when your authority is ignored. Guardians have reported feeling helpless, angry and frustrated. They also report feeling guilty because they have let down the person under guardianship. Some guardians have relinquished their role to someone else. Please keep your stories coming. Your experiences help us to identify what areas the Public Guardian needs to target for advocacy and education.

THE NEW WALLET CARD

OUR CONTACT DETAILS Phone: 8688 6070Toll Free: 1800 451 510Fax: 8688 9797TTY: 1800 882 889Email: informationsupport@opg.nsw.gov.auWebsite: www.publicguardian.lawlink.nsw.gov.au

Winter 2013

A guardian has legal authority, under the Guardianship

Act NSW 1987, to make decisions on behalf of another

person. These decisions could be about accommodation,

services, health care or medical/dental treatment.

The enduring guardianship form or guardianship order

gives information about the guardian’s authority and other

conditions. You can ask the guardian to see a copy.

In response to your feedback we have created a wallet card for guardians. The purpose of the wallet card is to help you explain your role to others, and help them understand their responsibility when working with guardians. The card is like a mini fact sheet that supports the information contained in the guardianship order. It can be a useful tool if you think a service provider or health professional you are dealing with needs more information about guardianship. If you want to another card please contact us and we will mail it to you.

MAKING A COMPLAINT It’s not easy to know when we should make a complaint and it’s not always easy to proceed with making one. Sometimes guardians are not sure how to make a complaint, and they fear it could lead to a worse outcome for the person involved. However, there are benefits to making a complaint. Making a complaint can:- resolve the situation- provide an organisation with insight into how they can improve its services - draw attention to issues that may be happening right across an industry. These are called systemic issues and they can fester for many years until people start complaining about them. Who do I complain to? The first place you should go is to the person you want to complain about. This is particularly the case if you are unhappy with a particular case manager or doctor who has been working with the person. Complaints can often be resolved simply by talking to the person and improving the lines of communication. If this doesn’t work consider either going to the manager or contacting the complaints department of the organisation. Taking it further…If you are unable to resolve the complaint with the service provider you may consider contacting an agency, such as the Ombudsman, to investigate the complaint. The information below outlines the agencies that may be relevant to your situation.

Aged Care Complaints Scheme

If you have a complaint about residential aged care services and community aged care packages you can contact the Aged Care Complaints Scheme. Call 1800 550 552 and ask to speak to a complaints officer in NSW. The National Aged Care Advocacy Line 1800 700 600 can provide an advocate who can assist you to help make a complaint.

NSW OmbudsmanThe NSW Ombudsman can assist you with complaints about agencies funded by the NSW Government. This includes not-for-profit-organisations, providing residential or community based care. It also includes other organisations such as Housing NSW and NSW Trustee & Guardian. www.ombo.nsw.gov.au Call 9286 1000 (Sydney) or 1800 451 524.

Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC)The Health Care Complaints Commission can assist you with complaints about health care providers. These include, mental health, public & private hospitals, GPs, allied health professionals such as psychologists and occupational therapists, ambulance and alternative practitioners, such as naturopaths & massage therapists.www.hccc.nsw.gov.au Call 9219 7444 or toll free 1800 043 159

Advocates and GuardiansUnder the services function

a guardian can consent to an

advocate being appointed if the

person is not able to provide

their own consent.

What is an advocate?

An advocate can be someone

who the person under

guardianship has a close

relationship with or they can

come from an advocacy

service. An advocate does

not have authority to make

decisions for the person. The

main role of an advocate

is to promote the rights of

the person with a disability

as well as their views and

preferences. An advocate

may attend meetings and

may assist the person to raise

a complaint with a service

provider. The advocate will

take direction from the person

only but may also work closely

with the guardian to achieve a

particular outcome.

Why use an advocate?

Advocates provide many

advantages for people under

guardianship. In particular,

they can feel unconditionally

supported from their

advocate and may feel more

empowered.

How does this fit with

my role?

While guardians will naturally

advocate for the person they

have been appointed for, the

role of a guardian is more

complex. The guardian is also

responsible for weighing up

risks and sometimes this can

lead to decisions the person

will not like.

If you need to make a decision

the person does not like they

may believe they are not being

supported even though this is

not your intention. In this case

an advocate can help them

feel supported by exploring

other options and by helping

them to sit with you (or a

service provider) to discuss

their situation.

Working with an

advocate

If an advocate believes you

should make a particular

decision you can ask them to

provide you with more

information. For instance, if an

advocate suggests the person

should change their case

manager, and you are unsure

about this, you can ask the

advocate for specific details

about why they are making this

suggestion and what exactly

they are recommending.

Where can I find an

advocate?

There are many different

agencies which provide

advocates. Some may be

linked with a complaints

agency or a particular industry,

such as aged care, and others

may be general advocacy

groups operating within a local

government area.

A good place to start is the

Advocacy & Information

Services Directory. This can be

found on ADHCs website. Go

to www.adhc.nsw.gov.au and

follow the links.

Do you have more

questions?

If you have any questions

about advocates or other

guardianship issues, call us on

8688 6070 or 1800 451 510.

The Private Guardian Support Unit (PGSU) is a free and confidential information and support service for private guardians in NSW. PGSU is a branch of the Public Guardian and is part of the Department of and Attorney General and Justice is not part of the Guardianship Tribunal or NSW Trustee & Guardian. The PGSU publishes Onguard and Now You’re the Guardian.

This document has been prepared by the PGSU for only general information purposes.

© State of New South Wales through the Department of Attorney General and Justice 2013. You may freely deal with this work for any purpose other than for profit. First edition 1998.

This information can be provided in alternative formats such as braille, audiotape, large print or computer disk. Please contact the PGSU for assistance.

The NATIONAL DISABILITY INSURANCE SCHEME is now known as DISABILITY CARE AUSTRALIA.

This scheme began a trial in July 2013 in selected regions.The website provides information about the scheme, including fact sheets. The fact sheets are also in easy English format. You may find

these helpful for explaining to others how the scheme works.www.disabilitycareaustralia.gov.au

Aged Care Update

From 1 August 2013 a number of changes will come into effect. These changes are in line with the Aged Care Reforms announced last year. The following is a brief summary of some of these changes. If you want more information visit www.livinglongerlivingbetter.gov.au.

HOME CARE PACKAGESThe Home Care Packages Program will replace existing Community Aged Care Packages (CACP), Extended Aged Care at Home (EACH) and EACH-Dementia. There will be four levels of care delivered on the basis of consumer directed care. The oxygen and enteral feeding supplements will be available at all levels of care where there is a clinical need.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO APPROVED PROVIDERSIf an aged care service provider meets the criteria they will be eligible for a new supplement. The guidelines are now on the Living Longer, Living Better website. In summary it apples to approved care providers caring for people with:• cognitive impairment in home care• severe behaviours and psychological symptoms in residential care• mental health conditions related to military service. The condition must be recognised by Department

of Veterans Affairs (DVA).

COMMUNITY VISITORS SCHEME & AGED CARE PLACESThe community visitors scheme will be expanded to include group visits in residential care facilities and to people receiving home care packages. You can consent to this scheme under the services function.There will be a total of 13610 aged care places released across Australia. Home care packages will get 2835 places, high care residential places will be increased by 5247 and low care residential placements will get an extra 2528 places.