How to Choose The Right Disability Services Provider

When selecting the right disability services provider it’s crucial that you take the time to thoroughly do your research. This will ensure that your loved one’s circumstances, needs and requirements will be met. Knowing you have a service provider on your side that can deliver on your needs.

Care With Dignity & Co director, Karen has shared her advice on selecting the right disability services provider.

Research, research, research

Always do your research - I can’t stress this enough.

Have a look at a range of disability service providers to see if they offer the services required to meet you or your loved one’s needs. Ask the hard questions, speak to their customer service team and obtain as much information as possible such as brochures, booklets and service agreements.

You can never ask too many questions. If a provider is uncomfortable answering you, that should be enough of a red flag to move on.

Seek recommendations

Nothing beats a good old-fashioned word-of-mouth recommendation. Tap your network of family and friends to see if they know of a high-quality disability services provider. 

Additionally, your general practitioner (GP) or your NDIS local area coordinator (LAC) may be able to provide a recommendation. 

Lastly, dedicated Facebook groups can be a treasure trove of information, don’t be afraid to ask these groups for referrals and experiences with local disability service providers.

Start with the basics

Are they local to you? Are they available 24/7 if you require it or are their service hours restricted to 9 am - 5 pm? Are they a specialist provider and offer a suite of services tailored to your needs? How long does it take to speak with a staff member and do they have procedures and processes for dealing with emergencies or complex care? 

It’s crucial that the basics are covered before digging deeper into the nitty gritty.

Accessibility requirements

It’s always a good idea to check that the disability service provider offers information in various languages and that the information is readily accessible to you. You need to feel confident that the provider provides effective and accessible communication channels for you. 

It’s also important to consider whether the provider is capable of matching you with support staff and care workers who match your personality, understand your culture, are multilingual or can assist with arranging multilingual support, and are aware of unique LGBTQIA+ needs and gender preferences.

Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone or have a trusted loved one contact the provider and ask how they meet these needs.

Reputation and experience

As we touched on earlier, checking in with your personal network of family and friends is a great way to find trustworthy recommendations. It’s also a great way to know which disability service providers to avoid.

In addition to seeking our reviews from those closest to you, we recommend checking the service provider’s Google Reviews and other reviews on platforms such as TrustPilot and any specialist NDIS provider review websites.

On their website, have a look at their about us page and staff profiles. This will help in determining whether they have the experience and qualifications to serve you or your loved one’s needs.

Clear service agreements

A service agreement helps explain how a disability services provider will support their participants and clients throughout their NDIS plan. It’s crucial to seek professional guidance from a service provider with easy-to-understand service agreements to avoid confusion and misunderstanding. 

A high-quality disability service provider will identify the support provided, its cost and payment method/funding options that can be used. 

Easy-to-understand and straightforward service agreements set proper expectations of what you can expect throughout the duration of the NDIS plan and how to raise concerns if need be.

What can I do if I’m not happy with my support provider?

If you’re not happy with your current disability support provider it’s important to know that you can change. Who you can change to will depend on the availability of other service providers in your location and if they provide the services you or your loved one require. This can at times prove difficult if you live in a rural area and require highly specialised services. 

We would first advise raising your concerns directly with your current provider and providing them with the opportunity to rectify the issues raised.

Want to learn more about the disability support services Care With Dignity & Co offers? Visit our NDIS personal care, NDIS domestic assistance and NDIS nursing pages for more information.