In the last four years we’ve spent a lot of time working to help create really meaningful AT policy for Australia. The NDIS gives us a great opportunity to build a system from the ground up that learns from all the research, and the consumer and professional experience of what does and doesn’t work. At the same time it has to be pragmatic.
Some of our material was written for government or other agencies, so it is confidential until they release it.
Other work we’ve done in our own time to inform the NDIA about delivering good outcomes – like Innovation. I wrote this proposal for Innovation Policy for AT under the NDIS in Sept 2014 with assistance from colleagues here in Australia and internationally, and it incorporated some ideas of others connected with the NDIA – but it is not NDIA endorsed at all (at least not yet) and some think it may distract us from getting AT right at this stage. The basics are captured in this diagram:
You can download the full AT Innovation Framework V3 here.
In 2013 we did two projects funded by the NDIS Practical Design Fund which can be downloaded via the links.
- With Dr Michael Summers on credentialing & accreditation for Australia’s AT sector.
- With Motivation Australia and Aboriginal Resource Development Service Inc. (ARDS) on Understanding Disability within an Indigenous Community.
In 2012 Tech4LIfe brought together Gunela Astbrink, Natasha Layton & Michael Summers to work with Lloyd Walker in preparing background papers and a Policy Statement on AT and the NDIS for the Australian Rehabilitation & Assistive Technology Association (ARATA).