Reading CHCDIS007 PDF

CHCDIS007
FACILITATE THE EMPOWERMENT OF PEOPLE

WITH DISABILITY
LEARNER RESOURCE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS........................................................................................................................................ 2
COURSE INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 6
ABOUT THIS GUIDE ..................................................................................................... ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
ABOUT ASSESSMENT ................................................................................................... ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
ELEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE CRITERIA ....................................................................................................... 9
REQUIRED SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE.............................................................................................................. 11
ASSESSMENT CONDITIONS ............................................................................................................................ 13
PRE-REQUISITES ............................................................................................................................................. 13
TOPIC 1 - DEMONSTRATE COMMITMENT TO EMPOWERMENT FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY ...................... 14
IDENTIFY CHANGES IN THE LEGAL, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL FRAMEWORKS WITHIN WHICH THE WORK IS
UNDERTAKEN ................................................................................................................................................ 14
TRADITIONAL MODEL ............................................................................................................................................. 14
MEDICAL MODEL.................................................................................................................................................. 14
SOCIAL MODEL..................................................................................................................................................... 14
SELF-DIRECTED MODEL........................................................................................................................................... 15
Person centered planning vs institutionalization ........................................................................................ 15
WHAT IS DISABLITY................................................................................................................................................ 15
DISABILITY VARIATIONS ........................................................................................................................................... 15
Catergories of disablity ............................................................................................................................... 16
TYPES OF DISABLITY ............................................................................................................................................... 16
acquired brain injury ................................................................................................................................... 16
autism spectrum disorder ........................................................................................................................... 17
cognitive disability....................................................................................................................................... 17
developmental delay ................................................................................................................................... 18
intellectual disability ................................................................................................................................... 18
neurological impairment ............................................................................................................................. 18
physical disability ........................................................................................................................................ 18
sensory disability, including hearing, vision impairment ............................................................................ 19
speech/language disability ......................................................................................................................... 19
LEGAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR WORKING WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY: ......................................................... 19
Discrimination ............................................................................................................................................. 19
Dignity of risk .............................................................................................................................................. 19
Duty of Care ................................................................................................................................................ 20
Mandatory reporting .................................................................................................................................. 20
Privacy, confidentiality and disclosure ........................................................................................................ 20
work health and safety................................................................................................................................ 21
Codes of conduct ......................................................................................................................................... 21
Work role boundaries – responsibilities and limitations ............................................................................. 21
INDICATORS OF ABUSE............................................................................................................................................ 22
Financial abuse............................................................................................................................................ 22
Neglect ........................................................................................................................................................ 22
Sexual abuse................................................................................................................................................ 23
Physical abuse ............................................................................................................................................. 23
Emotional abuse.......................................................................................................................................... 23
IDENTIFY WAYS SOCIETY CAN AFFECT THE LEVEL OF IMPAIRMENT EXPERIENCED BY A PERSON WITH
DISABILITY ..................................................................................................................................................... 23
Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 2
CHCDIS007 - Facilitate the empowerment of people with disability Version 2
Course code and name
SOCIAL CONSTRUCTS OF DISABLITY ............................................................................................................................ 24
SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING AND RESPECTING EACH PERSON AS AN INDIVIDUAL................................. 24
social justice ................................................................................................................................................ 24
access and equity ........................................................................................................................................ 24
THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING AND RESPECTING EACH PERSON AS AN INDIVIDUAL ............................. 25
REFLECT ON PERSONAL VALUES AND ATTITUDES REGARDING DISABILITY AND ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR
POTENTIAL IMPACT WHEN WORKING IN DISABILITY CONTEXTS .................................................................... 26
PERSONAL VALUES WHEN WORKING WITH PERSONS WITH A DISABLITY ............................................................................. 26
principles of disablity................................................................................................................................... 26
ETHICAL ISSUES .................................................................................................................................................... 27
Dealing with ethical dilemmas .................................................................................................................... 27
DEVELOP AND ADJUST OWN APPROACHES TO FACILITATE EMPOWERMENT ................................................ 28
PRINCIPLES OF EMPOWERMENT ............................................................................................................................... 28
RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH ...................................................................................................................................... 28
METHODS TO DEVELOP AND ADJUST OWN APPROACHES ............................................................................................... 28
Seeking feedback......................................................................................................................................... 29
Taking part in professional development .................................................................................................... 29
Training ....................................................................................................................................................... 29
self-reflection .............................................................................................................................................. 29
TOPIC 2- FOSTER HUMAN RIGHTS .................................................................................................................. 30
ASSIST THE PERSON WITH DISABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THEIR RIGHTS ......................................................... 30
UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES (CRPD) ................................................... 30
STRATEGIES THAT ASSIST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES TO EXERCISE THEIR RIGHTS AND SUPPORT .............................................. 30
COMMUNICATING RIGHTS TO CLIENTS ....................................................................................................................... 31
DELIVER SERVICES THAT ENSURE THE RIGHTS AND NEEDS OF THE PERSON ARE UPHELD IN THE CONTEXT OF
PERSON-CENTEREDNESS ................................................................................................................................ 32
Client rights ................................................................................................................................................. 32
client needs ................................................................................................................................................. 32
Ensuring a person centered response to procedural reviews ...................................................................... 32
rights of a person with a disablity ............................................................................................................... 33
clarifying the rights of people with a disablity ............................................................................................ 33
SEEKING ASSISTANCE TO ENSURE CLIENT RIGHTS ARE ABLE TO BE MET .............................................................................. 33
ENSURE THE CULTURAL NEEDS OF THE PERSON ARE IDENTIFIED, ACCEPTED AND UPHELD ........................... 34
CULTURAL OBLIGATIONS ......................................................................................................................................... 34
Example aboriginls with disablity ................................................................................................................ 34
FACTORS IMPACTING ON CULTURAL NEEDS ................................................................................................................. 34
IMMIGRATION STATUS ........................................................................................................................................... 34
FACTORS THAT MAY IMPACT ON QUALITY SERVICE ........................................................................................................ 35
IDENTIFY BREACHES OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND RESPOND AND REPORT ACCORDING TO ORGANISATION
PROCEDURES ................................................................................................................................................. 36
REPORTING NEEDS ................................................................................................................................................. 36
BREACHES TO HUMAN RIGHTS ................................................................................................................................. 36
examples of breaches .................................................................................................................................. 36
IDENTIFYING BREACHES TO HUMAN RIGHTS ................................................................................................................ 37
IDENTIFY INDICATIONS OF POSSIBLE ABUSE AND/OR NEGLECT AND REPORT ACCORDING TO ORGANISATION
PROCEDURE ................................................................................................................................................... 38
TYPES OF HARM, ABUSE OR NEGLECT......................................................................................................................... 38
PEOPLE WHO ARE VUNERABLE TO ABUSE .................................................................................................................... 38
ENABLE CLINETS TO COME FOWARD .......................................................................................................................... 39
indicators of harm, neglect and abuse ........................................................................................................ 39
HARM NEGLECT AND ABUSE..................................................................................................................................... 39
RESPONDING TO RISK FACTORS................................................................................................................................. 40
REASONABLE RESPONSE .......................................................................................................................................... 40
TOPIC 3 - FACILITATE CHOICE AND SELF-DETERMINATION ............................................................................. 41

USING A PERSON-CENTRED APPROACH WORK IN A MANNER THAT ACKNOWLEDGES THE PERSON WITH
DISABILITY AS THEIR OWN EXPERT ................................................................................................................ 41
PERSON-CENTRED PRACTICE .................................................................................................................................... 41
STRENGTHS-BASED APPROACH................................................................................................................................. 41
SELF-ADVOCACY .................................................................................................................................................... 41
ACTIVE SUPPORT ................................................................................................................................................... 42
Interacting in a manner that promotes participation ................................................................................. 42
activity support plans .................................................................................................................................. 42
Keeping track .............................................................................................................................................. 42
ACTIVE LISTENING ................................................................................................................................................. 42
FACILITATE PERSON-CENTRED OPTIONS FOR ACTION ON RELEVANT ISSUES AND DISCUSS WITH THE PERSON
AND/OR FAMILY AND/OR CARER AND/OR RELEVANT OTHER ....................................................................... 43
THE IMPORTANCE OF INVOLVING FAMILIES, CARERS AND RELEVANT OTHERS ...................................................................... 43
common obstacles ...................................................................................................................................... 43
common benefits ......................................................................................................................................... 43
OPTIONS FOR ACTION ............................................................................................................................................. 43
planning actions .......................................................................................................................................... 44
DIFFERENT MODES OF SUPPORT FOR DIFFERENT DISABILITIES ......................................................................................... 44
Genetic factors ............................................................................................................................................ 44
Physical trauma ........................................................................................................................................... 44
Psychological trauma .................................................................................................................................. 45
Chronic lifestyle conditions .......................................................................................................................... 45
Acquired brain injury ................................................................................................................................... 46
PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO THE PERSON WITH DISABILITY TO FACILITATE COMMUNICATION OF THEIR
PERSONAL GOALS .......................................................................................................................................... 48
COMMUNICATING WITH PERSONS WITH A DISABLITY .................................................................................................... 48
communication techniques ......................................................................................................................... 48
person centered communication ................................................................................................................. 49
IDENTIFYING GOALS OF A PERSON WITH A DISABILITY .................................................................................................... 49
Goals ........................................................................................................................................................... 49
PROVIDE PERSON-CENTRED SUPPORT IN A MANNER THAT ENCOURAGES AND EMPOWERS THE PERSON
WITH DISABILITY TO MAKE THEIR OWN CHOICES .......................................................................................... 50
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTAINENCE PLANS ........................................................................................................ 50
SUPPORT AND ENCOURAGE EFFECTIVE DECSION MAKING ............................................................................................... 50
Guide strengths and energy of clients ......................................................................................................... 51
Maintain positive direction ......................................................................................................................... 51
Cooperation ................................................................................................................................................. 51
Achievements .............................................................................................................................................. 51
Respect ........................................................................................................................................................ 51
ASSIST WITH STRATEGIES TO ENSURE THAT THE PERSON IS COMFORTABLE WITH ANY DECISIONS THAT ARE
BEING MADE ON THEIR BEHALF ..................................................................................................................... 52
INFORMED CONSENT ............................................................................................................................................. 52
EXPLAININIG OPTIONS CLEARLY TO PERSONS WITH A DISABLITY ....................................................................................... 52
MAKING REFERRALS ON BEHALF OF A CLIENT ............................................................................................................... 52
TRUST AND RESPECT .............................................................................................................................................. 53
ASSIST WITH ACCESSING ADVOCACY SERVICES AND OTHER COMPLAINT MECHANISMS AS REQUIRED ........ 54
WHAT IS ADVOCACY? ............................................................................................................................................. 54
ADVOCACY SCOPE OF RESPONSIBLITY ......................................................................................................................... 54
advocacy actions ......................................................................................................................................... 54
minimising conflict in advocacy actions ...................................................................................................... 54
ADVOCACY SERVICES AND COMPLAINT MECHANISMS .................................................................................................... 55
access procedures ....................................................................................................................................... 55
SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................................... 56
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................................... 57

UNIT INTRODUCTION
This resource covers the unit CHCDIS007 - Facilitate the empowerment of people with
disability.
This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to facilitate the empowerment of
people with disability to deliver rights based services using a person-centred approach.
It should be carried out in conjunction with individualised plans.
This unit applies to workers in varied disability contexts.
The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and
State/Territory legislation, Australian/New Zealand standards and industry codes of
practice.
ABOUT THIS RESOURCE
This resource brings together information to develop your knowledge about this unit.
The information is designed to reflect the requirements of the unit and uses headings to
makes it easier to follow.
Read through this resource to develop your knowledge in preparation for your
assessment. You will be required to complete the assessment tools that are included in
your program. At the back of the resource are a list of references you may find useful to
review.
As a student it is important to extend your learning and to search out text books,
internet sites, talk to people at work and read newspaper articles and journals which
can provide additional learning material.
Your trainer may include additional information and provide activities. Slide
presentations and assessments in class to support your learning.

ABOUT ASSESSMENT
Throughout your training we are committed to your learning by providing a training

and assessment framework that ensures the knowledge gained through training is
translated into practical on the job improvements.
You are going to be assessed for:
 Your skills and knowledge using written and observation activities that apply
to your workplace.
 Your ability to apply your learning.
 Your ability to recognise common principles and actively use these on the job.
You will receive an overall result of Competent or Not Yet Competent for the assessment
of this unit. The assessment is a competency based assessment, which has no pass or
fail. You are either competent or not yet competent. Not Yet Competent means that you
still are in the process of understanding and acquiring the skills and knowledge required
to be marked competent. The assessment process is made up of a number of assessment
methods. You are required to achieve a satisfactory result in each of these to be deemed
competent overall.
All of your assessment and training is provided as a positive learning tool. Your assessor
will guide your learning and provide feedback on your responses to the assessment. For
valid and reliable assessment of this unit, a range of assessment methods will be used to
assess practical skills and knowledge.
Your assessment may be conducted through a combination of the following methods:
 Written Activity
 Case Study
 Observation
 Questions
 Third Party Report
The assessment tool for this unit should be completed within the specified time period
following the delivery of the unit. If you feel you are not yet ready for assessment,
discuss this with your trainer and assessor.

To be successful in this unit you will need to relate your learning to your workplace. You
may be required to demonstrate your skills and be observed by your assessor in your
workplace environment. Some units provide for a simulated work environment and
your trainer and assessor will outline the requirements in these instances.

ELEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE
CRITERIA
1. Demonstrate commitment to 1.1 Identify changes in the legal, political and social
empowerment for people with frameworks within which the work is undertaken
disability
1.2 Identify ways society can affect the level of
impairment experienced by a person with disability
1.3 Reflect on personal values and attitudes regarding

disability and acknowledge their potential impact
when working in disability contexts
1.4 Develop and adjust own approaches to facilitate

empowerment
2. Foster human rights 2.1 Assist the person with disability to understand
their rights
2.2 Deliver services that ensure the rights and needs of

the person are upheld in the context of person-
centeredness
2.3 Ensure the cultural needs of the person are

identified, accepted and upheld
2.4 Identify breaches of human rights and respond and

report according to organisation procedures
2.5 Identify indications of possible abuse and/or

neglect and report according to organisation procedure
3. Facilitate choice and self- 3.1 Using a person-centred approach work in a manner
determination that acknowledges the person with disability as their
own expert
3.2 Facilitate person-centred options for action on

relevant issues and discuss with the person and/or
family and/or carer and/or relevant other
3.3 Provide assistance to the person with disability to

facilitate communication of their personal goals
3.4 Provide person-centred support in a manner that

encourages and empowers the person with disability to
make their own choices

3.5 Assist with strategies to ensure that the person is
comfortable with any decisions that are being made on
their behalf
3.6 Assist with accessing advocacy services and other

complaint mechanisms as required

REQUIRED SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
This describes the essential knowledge and skills and their level required for this unit.
The candidate must be able to demonstrate essential knowledge required to effectively

manage tasks outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit, manage tasks
and manage contingencies in the context of the work role. This includes knowledge of:
 History and recent developments in disability

 Social versus medical model of service
 Institutionalised versus person-centred, self-directed model of support
 Social constructs of disability and the impact of own attitudes on working
with people with disabilities
 How and when to seek support from more experienced and qualified staff
 Types of disability, including:
 Acquired brain injury
 Autism spectrum disorder
 Cognitive disability
 Developmental delay
 Intellectual disability
 Neurological impairment
 Physical disability
 Sensory disability, including hearing, vision impairment
 Speech/language disability
 Support practices for people, including but not limited to, the following
conditions:
 Genetic factors
 Physical trauma
 Psychological trauma
 Chronic lifestyle conditions
 Acquired brain injury
 Legal and ethical considerations for working with people with disability:
 Codes of conduct
 Discrimination
 Dignity of risk
 Duty of care
 Human rights, including the United Nations convention on the rights of
persons with disabilities (UNCRPD)
 Informed consent
 Mandatory reporting
 Privacy, confidentiality and disclosure
 Work role boundaries – responsibilities and limitations
 Work health and safety
 Principles of:
 Empowerment
 Rights-based approaches
 Person-centred practices
 Self-advocacy
 Active support
 Active listening
 Social justice and the importance of knowing and respecting each person as
an individual
 Strengths-based approaches
 Strategies that assist people with disabilities to exercise their rights and
support independent action and thinking, including use of technology (e.g.
laptops or tablets) to facilitate choice
 How to access and use advocacy services and complaint mechanisms
 Indicators of abuse and/or neglect in relation to people with disabilities

ASSESSMENT CONDITIONS
Skills must have been demonstrated in the disabilities workplace with the addition of
simulations and scenarios where the full range of contexts and situations have not been
provided in the workplace. These are situations relating to emergency or unplanned
procedures where assessment in these circumstances would be unsafe, impractical or
threatens the dignity of the person with disability.
The following conditions must be met for this unit:
 access to individualised plans and any equipment outlined in the plan
Overall, assessment must involve real interactions with people with disability, their
families/carers/relevant others and the person’s individualised plan.
Assessors must satisfy the Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs)
2015/AQTF mandatory competency requirements for assessors.
PRE-REQUISITES
This unit must be assessed after the following pre-requisite unit:

TOPIC 1 - DEMONSTRATE
COMMITMENT TO EMPOWERMENT
FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY
IDENTIFY CHANGES IN THE LEGAL, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL

FRAMEWORKS WITHIN WHICH THE WORK IS UNDERTAKEN
The ways in which Disabilities have been viewed socially, legally and politically have
changed in some fundamental ways in recent years. The Framework in which modern
work in the field is conducted is vastly different from its origins.
TRADITIONAL MODEL
The traditional model of disability spanned from ancient history to the 18th century. In
the traditional model, persons with disabilities where thought to be under the spell of
witchcraft, possessed by demons or the victims of God’s punishment for their sins or the
sins of their parents.
MEDICAL MODEL
The medical model of disability considered the person with a disability to be a problem.
They were measured against a scale of what was known as normalcy. They were
measured and considered only for what they could not do as opposed to what they
could do.
SOCIAL MODEL
The Social model of disability is the modern view of persons with disabilities. The social
model focuses on the strengths of individuals instead of their disabilities. Attention is
given to lessening the barriers between them and living their lives in the best way
possible.

SELF-DIRECTED MODEL
The self-directed model is a method of providing services for those with disabilities that
allows the person with a disability or their representative, have direct control and
responsibility of managing the services that are provided for them.
PERSON-CENTRED PLANNING VS INSTITUTIONALIZATION
One modern approach to planning the futures of people with disabilities is the person-
centred approach. The person-centred approach focuses on the individual’s goals and
desires and assist them in planning and carrying out an ongoing problem solving regime
to achieve their goals. The traditional and medical models institutionalised individuals
for an array of disabilities. Those individuals would be forced to spend the rest of their
life in institutions with little or no control over what their lives were like while being
held there.
WHAT IS DISABLITY
A disability is any condition that is constant in a person and restricts the person in some
way in their everyday life.
The disability services Act 1993 explains disability in the following way:
The Disability Services Act (1993) defines ‘disability’ as meaning a disability:
which is attributable to an intellectual, psychiatric, cognitive, neurological, sensory or

physical impairment or a combination of those impairments
which is permanent or likely to be permanent
which may or may not be of a chronic or episodic nature
Which results in substantially reduced capacity of the person for communication, social
interaction, learning or mobility and a need for continuing support services.1
DISABILITY VARIATIONS
There are many different types of disability and these will affect people in a range of
different ways. Disability is a personal and unique thing for each person that it affects
and it is essential to ensure that all services and support that are offered to persons with
are tailored specifically to each individual’s needs.
1http://www.disability.wa.gov.au/understanding-disability1/understanding-disability/what-is-
disability/
CATERGORIES OF DISABLITY
The main categories that disability can be broken down into include:
 Physical
 Sensory
 Psychiatric
 Neurological
 Cognitive
 Intellectual
 Combinations of the above
TYPES OF DISABLITY
ACQUIRED BRAIN INJURY
Acquired brain injuries are very common in Australia and can impact on people in a
range of different ways and with greatly varying severity. Acquired brain injury can
alter the way that a person, thinks, behaves and acts.
Acquired brain injuries can be caused by a range of different factors including:
 Head trauma due to fall, severe shaking, car accident, bike accident and other
incidents that cause blows to the head
 Strokes
 Lack of oxygen to the brain caused by suffocation, electrocution, near-
drowning or heart failure
 Brain tumours
 Meningitis or encephalitis
 Infant alcohol or drug syndrome
 Lead poisoning

AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER
Autism spectrum disorders vary greatly from person to person and are lifelong
disorders.
Autism spectrum disorder may be identified by challenges for the person in the areas of:
 Non-verbal communication
 Friendship building
 Social and emotional development
 Language
 Participating in conversations
People on the autism spectrum may present a range of characteristics including:
 Repetitive behaviour
 Fixations
 Dysfunctional routines
 Sensory overload
Several different types of autism fall on the spectrum and these include:
 Autistic disorder
 Asperger’s
 Pervasive developmental disorder
 Retts
 Childhood Disintegrative disorder
COGNITIVE DISABILITY
Cognitive disabilities can be very broad in nature; some cognitive disorders are
biological while others are psychological.
All cognitive disabilities involve the person experiencing difficulty in mental tasks.

DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY
Developmental delays are a range of disorders that result in the person developing in
physical, mental or emotional categories. This is a life-long and varied collection of
disabilities that result from a lack of development in a variety of areas.
INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY
Intellectual disabilities are life-long and cannot be cured, they are a range of disabilities
that are a caused by chromosomal defects that are present from birth. It is essential in
the case of intellectual disabilities that the person is provided with appropriate
resources and services in order to assist them to function within the bounds of their
disability the best that they can.
NEUROLOGICAL IMPAIRMENT
Neurological impairment is a broad category of disabilities that takes in more than 600
different types of disabilities. Neurological impairment is a result of damage to the
nervous system.
There are a range of different causes for this including:
 Presence at birth
 Injury
 Illness
Neuroglical disabilities occur when the nervous system is damaged; this includes
damage to the brain and spinal cord. This causes issues to the communication that
should be occurring between the brain and the body.
PHYSICAL DISABILITY
Physical disabilities are a variety of disabilities that place a range of limitations on the
functioning, stamina, mobility or dexterity of a person’s physical performance. Some
physical disabilities may limit other functions of the person’s body including, blindness,
sleep disorders and respiratory disorders.

SENSORY DISABILITY, INCLUDING HEARING, VISION IMPAIRMENT
There are a range of disabilities that affect the sensory systems of person’s body. These
can be varied in their cause and in their effect.
Sensory disabilities include impairments to:
 Hearing
 Sight
In some cases a person may be suffering from dual sensory impairment meaning that
the person will be dealing with both types of sensory impairment at once.
SPEECH/LANGUAGE DISABILITY
Speech and language disabilities are both involving the action of verbal communication
and associated impairments or challenges.
When a person has a speech disability they will have trouble or not be able to make the
necessary sounds required in order to speak fluently or clearly.
When a person has a language disability they will have difficulty in understanding or
communicating, their thoughts, ideas and feelings.
LEGAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR WORKING WITH PEOPLE WITH

DISABILITY:
DISCRIMINATION
It is essential to ensure that the person with a disability is not discriminated against and
receives the same level of care, choice and respect as any other person.
The Disability Discrimination Act must be adhered to at all times throughout service
delivery and contact with the client.
DIGNITY OF RISK
Dignity of risk is the legal requirement to ensure that all persons with a disability has
the legal right to choose their own medical treatments even if the professionals involved
feel that this is not the correct choice for them.

DUTY OF CARE
Duty of care is one’s legal obligation to take reasonable care to prevent others from
being harmed. This means that if a worker identifies something that could reasonably be
considered to be a risk, than the employee must, in response, take reasonable action to
eliminate that risk. This means that if a client is presenting with indicators of harm it is
important that these are responded to according to legal requirements and duty of care
needs.
All relevant risk assessments, observation tools and activities should be carried out
when any of these indicators are present. It is essential that when a client presents with
a need for a particular service they will in fact be referred on to that service.
Legal requirements and duty of care obligations include:
 Ethical referral
 Comply with state and territory legislation
MANDATORY REPORTING
In addition to the general level of duty of care and ensuring that adult’s risks are
minimised and managed it is important to keep in mind that in some instances such as
when a child is presenting with indicators of harm, neglect, abuse or risk of harm that
appropriate legal and ethical factors are considered.
Child protection requires knowledge of relevant state mandatory reporting legislation

and its application. It will be necessary for all community services workers to ensure
that they both know and comply with the legislation related to the reporting of these
indicators in children for their jurisdiction.
PRIVACY, CONFIDENTIALITY AND DISCLOSURE
With regards to community service work, this is viewed in legal terms as the protection
of personal information. In order for one to comply legally with regulations surrounding
confidentiality, an individual is not permitted to share a client’s personal information
with co-workers, third parties or even friends and family of the client. The legal
exception to this rule is when sharing the information could prevent harm being done to
the client or anyone in the greater community.
There are many ways to keep information confidential. The following are examples of
some of these methods:

 individual files are locked and secured
 support workers do not tell other people what is in a client’s file unless they
have permission from the client
 information about clients is not told to people who do not need to know
 clients’ medical details are not discussed without their consent
 Adult clients have the right to keep any information about themselves
confidential, which includes that information being kept from family and
friends
WORK HEALTH AND SAFETY
It is essential that all aspects of the Work Health and Safety Act are upheld at all times
and that appropriate controls and steps are taken in order to effectively identify any
hazards in the environment and to take appropriate measures to minimise, manage and
report on them.
CODES OF CONDUCT
The disability codes of practice are put in place to ensure that all of the rights, needs and
preferences of the client are upheld to the required standard at all times.
There are a range of codes of practice that may apply to the service delivery for people
with a disability and these may include:
 Discrimination code of practice

 Disability code of practice
 Work health and safety codes of practice
 Community services codes of practice
 Ethical code of practice
WORK ROLE BOUNDARIES – RESPONSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS
It is essential that all disability personnel are clearly aware of their own roles and
responsibilities in order to ensure that they are able to effectively work within them. It
is also important that they are aware of their own professional boundaries and that
these roles, responsibilities and boundaries must be clearly demonstrated and
explained to the person with a disability in order to establish and maintain a
professional, legal and ethical relationship with the person with a disability.
Work role boundaries, responsibilities and limitations may include:
 Agreed policies and procedures

 Scope of role
 Legal obligations
 Professional engagement with the client
INDICATORS OF ABUSE
It is important to remember that abuse can happen to any client regardless of their age,
sex, culture, abilities or socio-economic background. There are many different types of
abuse that you may either witness the signs of or see evidence of when working within
community services. Each of the different types of abuse has different indicators that
can assist in identifying them. As a community services worker you will need to have an
understanding of what these different types of abuse can consist of and how to identify
the signs that these different types of abuse may have.
FINANCIAL ABUSE
Financial abuse is a form of abuse where money is used as a tool to gain power and
restrict the freedoms of a client. The client may report that their partner does not allow
them to have any financial independence at all, does not allow the person to earn their
own money and has extreme control over every dollar that the person has. You should
look out for signs that this is occurring such as fear related to making financial decisions,
fear in spending very small amounts of money, not having access to any money’s at all
that are not provided by the partner.
NEGLECT
Is when a client is not given basic care or reasonable assistance as required, this can be
with hygiene, food, refusal of much needed home care and leaving a person stranded or
alone for long periods of time when they are not in a position to care for themselves.
Neglect can be noticed in the person’s appearance and hygiene and in things that they
say that may give away situations that should not have occurred.

SEXUAL ABUSE
Examples of sexual abuse include forcing a person to have sex with their partner
whenever they want and in the way that they want or threatening to have affairs is the
partner does not want to have sex with them or withholding sex in a malicious way.
Direct or indirect comments regarding these types of behaviours can be an indication of
client sexual abuse. Client sexual abuse can also be inappropriate or illegal sex acts that
are forced upon the client.
PHYSICAL ABUSE
Occurs when a client is physically harmed in a violent manner such as beating, forcibly
restraining, slapping or injuring the person either deliberately or through continued
negligence. Signs of physical abuse can be unexplained scars, marks, cuts, bruises or
broken bones. Direct or indirect comments related to instances like this or shying away
and flinching when another person moves suddenly or tries to touch the person.
EMOTIONAL ABUSE
Emotional abuse is a very damaging form of abuse and is often difficult to recognise.
This can consist of verbal abuse, isolation, threats and intimidation. Signs that a client is
being emotionally abused can be stress, poor self-esteem, depression, fear of the person
performing the abuse, stress related health problems, withdrawal and loss of confidence
and independence.
IDENTIFY WAYS SOCIETY CAN AFFECT THE LEVEL OF

IMPAIRMENT EXPERIENC ED BY A PERSON WITH DISABILITY
Community services workers need to have an understanding of the ways that society
can affect the level of impairment experienced by people with disabilities.
It is important to remember that when a person with a disability has access to the
required resources, aids, support and services that they are likely to be able to
overcome many of the challenges that they face on a day to day basis.

SOCIAL CONSTRUCTS OF DISABLITY
Social constructs of disability is a theory that is based on the fact that because society in
fact creates disability themselves through the assumption that all people are able bodied
and fully functioning. This assumption creates the disability by placing a range of
barriers to the person with a disability from participating in society.
It is thought that these beliefs therefore are the cause of the disabling nature of the
person’s physical or mental attributes and not necessarily the physical and mental
attributes themselves.
It is important to consider this when providing service and support to a person with a
disability in order to utilise the aides and resources that are available to the person with
a disability in order to ensure that they are able to overcome these barriers that are
placed on them by society.
It is important to remember that a person with a disability is able to lead a fully

functioning and contributing life within society and it is important that steps are taken
in order to effectively facilitate this.
SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING AND RESPECTING

EACH PERSON AS AN INDIVIDUAL
SOCIAL JUSTICE
Social justice is the concept that all people deserve the same access and opportunity as
each there and that disability is not a reason for this same treatment not being offered to
a person with disability or for any other reason.
ACCESS AND EQUITY
Access and equity is the act of promoting fairness while distributing resources and
opportunities, particularly to those in need. While working in community development,
in order to adhere to the principles of access and equity, the following guidelines should
be considered:
 Ensuring that individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

are presented with information in manner which they can understand
 Provide material in multiple languages and provide a translator when possible

 No one should be excluded from taking part or being employed by the
organisation based on race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or country of
birth
 Services should be designed and delivered on the basis of accessibility to all who
qualify to use them
 Holding meetings and services in locations that have access for handicapped
individuals
 Encourage members from diverse backgrounds to seek employment or use of
services from the organisation.
THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING AND RESPECTING EACH PERSON AS AN INDIVIDUAL
It is essential that all personnel believe and feel that each and every person with a
disability is individual and unique in their own characteristics, personality and needs
and that the factors and aspects of their disability and the ways that these factors impact
on the person with the disability will also be unique in their nature and severity.
All disability personnel should ensure that they make all assessments, decisions and
support provisions with the specific and individual aspects of each client’s
circumstances are catered for at all times.

REFLECT ON PERSONAL VALUES AND ATTITUDES REGARDING
DISABILITY AND ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR POTENTIAL IMPACT
WHEN WORKING IN DISABILITY CONTEXTS
Community service workers who work with individuals with disabilities should
regularly reflect on their own personal values and attitudes regarding disability and
acknowledge their potential to impact people with disabilities when in work contexts.
PERSONAL VALUES WHEN WORKING WITH PERSONS WITH A DISABLITY
It is essential that all workers with the disability and community services sectors are
aware of their own personal values and beliefs in relation to people with a disability. It
is essential that all of their own personal values and beliefs are upheld by the principles
of the disability sector at all times.
When working with persons with a disability the personal values, attitudes and beliefs
of a disability worker can be either a negative or positive factor in the service that they
provide and it is essential to ensure that they are promoting the correct attitudes at all
times.
When a worker does not have personal attitudes and beliefs that are in line with the
principles of working with persons of disability this can impact on the client and
therefore it is essential that these values attitudes and beliefs are able to be effectively
managed at all times.
PRINCIPLES OF DISABLITY
Principles of disability include:
 Professional treatment
 The upholding of rights
 Self-determination
 Empowerment
 The uniqueness of each person
 The fact that a person with a disability can overcome all challenges required
with the correct support and service provision

ETHICAL ISSUES
Issues concerning values of community service workers are considered to be ethical

issues. Issues that may arise that involve a conflict between the value base and values of
a worker and the value base of a worker are considered to be ethical dilemmas.
DEALING WITH ETHICAL DILEMMAS
Workers should have a course of action to dealing with ethical dilemmas. Some steps
that can be taken to assist in resolving ethical dilemmas are:
1. Determine the organisations value base – Workers can consult the

organisations mission statement and other relevant document to accurately
determine their organisations value base.
2. Evaluation and consideration of workers own value base – Workers
should give serious consideration of their own value base to ensure that it is
congruent with that of the organisation by which they are employed
3. Determine if there is an ethical dilemma – An ethical dilemma exists when
there is a conflict between the workers values and those of the organisation
by which they are employed. These three conditions must be present in a
situation in order for it to be considered an ethical dilemma:
 The worker or “Agent” must be faced with a decision of a course of action in a
given situation.
 There must be several options to choose from
 No matter which course of action is taken both value base of the worker and
those of the organisation cannot both be upheld?
4. Resolve the dilemma – A choice of the available options must be made. The
worker may opt to give the responsibility to another to avoid having to make
the decision. Workers often have consultation with colleagues to assist them
with making a decision in the situation.

DEVELOP AND ADJUST OWN APPROACHES TO FACILITATE
EMPOWERMENT
All community service workers should constantly develop and adjust their own
approaches to facilitating services to their clients. This is especially true of workers
approaches to empowering people with disabilities.
After a long history of misunderstanding, misdiagnosing and misrepresenting people

with disabilities, society is finally starting to adopt more compassionate and effective
approaches to interacting with people with disabilities.
Service workers have added legal, social and professional responsibilities toward
disabled individuals.
PRINCIPLES OF EMPOWERMENT
Gaining independence is a very important aspect of empowerment for people living with
a disability and this is a very important aspect of working with people with a disability.
It is essential that a range of steps are taken that will assist in guiding and enabling
choice and self-determination in a positive and supportive manner for the client at all
times.
RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH
Rights based approaches in community service are focused on ensuring that all of the
rights of all clients are upheld at all times. It is essential to ensure that all rights of the
client are known, explained to the client and then upheld at all times.
METHODS TO DEVELOP AND ADJUST OWN APPROACHES
Community service workers can develop and adjust their own approaches in the many
ways, including:

SEEKING FEEDBACK
Workers should seek feedback on their job performance, attitude toward specific job
tasks or scenarios. They can seek feedback from supervisors, colleagues or appropriate
outside organisations.
TAKING PART IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
It is essential that all disability personnel take part in a range of professional

development activities in relation to different methods for encouraging and supporting
the empowerment of persons with a disability.
TRAINING
There may be a range of training activities that personnel will be able to participate in,
in order to ensure that their skills in relation to the empowerment of clients with a
disability can be maintained.
Training in empowerment could include:
 Communication
 Disability support
 Methods for encouraging and supporting empowerment
SELF-REFLECTION
Self-reflection is an important learning and professional development opportunity for

disability personnel and should be seen as both integral to quality service and a positive
practice to be undertaken.
Self-reflection may include:
 Looking back on own performance

 Analysing all work practices and strategies
 Analysing learner feedback
 Analysing own responses to learners
 Considering situations that both worked and needed improvement
 Brainstorming for possible solutions
 Investigation of reasons for incidents
 Determining a range of improvements that could be made

TOPIC 2- FOSTER HUMAN RIGHTS
ASSIST THE PERSON WITH DISABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THEIR

RIGHTS
It is essential to ensure that the person with a disability is assisted appropriately in

order to ensure that they understand their own rights.
UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH

DISABILITIES (CRPD)
The CRPD is the first internal binding agreement to directly deal with the rights of
people with disabilities. The CRPD was ratified in Australia in 2007. The primary
purposes of the CRPD are to ensure that people with disabilities are allowed to have the
same human rights as people without disabilities and the protection their dignity.
It is essential to ensure that all of the person’s human rights are respected and upheld at
all times. All human rights legislation as well as the United Nations conventions on the
rights of persons with a disability is respected and upheld. These treaties provide
persons with a disability with a range of rights including, respect, dignity, self-
determination and the right to choose what happens to them in their lives.
STRATEGIES THAT ASSIST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES TO EXERCISE THEIR

RIGHTS AND SUPPORT
It is essential to develop a range of strategies that can encourage and develop

independent action and thinking.
Strategies may include:
 Use of technology (e.g. laptops or tablets) to facilitate choice

 Communication
 Information sharing
 Handouts
 Presentations
 Explanations
 Communication aides

COMMUNICATING RIGHTS TO CLIENTS
Step 1 – Establish your overall communication objectives, what do you want to

communicate and why, what things would you like to avoid.
Examples could be:
 Clear and effective communication tailored to the different parties

 Regular communication
 Communication that engages and encourages
 Avoid miscommunication
 Avoid forgotten communication
Step 2 – List and define all of your client’s rights. You will need to communicate with a
variety of different people, and each of these communications will have different goals
attached to them.
Step 3 – Undertake your communication in a clear and respectful manner and do not
deviate from your communication plan. Make sure you are respectful and clear.

DELIVER SERVICES THAT ENSURE THE RIGHTS AND NEEDS OF
THE PERSON ARE UPHEL D IN THE CONTEXT OF PERSON-
CENTEREDNESS
As a part of the role of a disability worker it will be necessary to clarify the rights and of
people with a disability and to ensure that these rights and needs are upheld according
to the principles of person centeredness.
CLIENT RIGHTS
People with a disability have a range of rights that must be upheld at all times it is the
responsibility of the disability worker to ensure that all tights are known and applied in
consultation with the client at all times.
CLIENT NEEDS
These are the aspects that a client requires in order to be able to reach their aspirations
and also in order to ensure that the client is provided with access to the full breadth and
depth of their rights.
ENSURING A PERSON CENTERED RESPONSE TO PROCEDURAL REVIEWS
When providing services that are matched to the rights and needs of a person with a
disability it is essential to ensure that the clients service is aligned correctly with their
rights, needs, and a person centred response.
A person-centred approach includes:
 Putting people and carers at the centre of service delivery

 When the person is a child or young person, service delivery strategies may
need to be modified to ensure child safety and provide a child friendly,
supportive environment
 Including people in decision-making relating to their care
 Involving people in discussions about service delivery options and issues
 Obtaining the person's consent to examine, treat or work with them
 Effective customer service
 Listening to and addressing complaints within scope of own work role
The responsibility of the worker is to ensure that all of these rights are upheld and
provided for at all times throughout the duration of the service delivery to the client.

RIGHTS OF A PERSON WITH A DISABLITY
The rights of persons with a disability may be related to:
 Conduct
 Participation in treatment
 Management of own treatment
 To take responsibility for own well-being
CLARIFYING THE RIGHTS OF PEOPLE WITH A DISABLITY
Information that may be used to clarify the rights and responsibilities of people with a
disability may include:
 Legislation
 Best practice guidelines
 Policies and procedures
 Disability specialists
 Codes of practice
SEEKING ASSISTANCE TO ENSURE CLIENT RIGHTS ARE ABLE TO BE MET
It is essential to ensure that all staff that are working within the disability sector are
aware of the quality and level of care that all persons with a disability have the right to
and they are able to know when they are not meeting the needs of the person and
another professional should be called.
Understanding the scope of one’s role is extremely important at all times.

ENSURE THE CULTURAL NEEDS OF THE PERSON ARE
IDENTIFIED, ACCEPTED AND UPHELD
Community services workers will work with a client base as varied as the communities
that we live in, here in Australia most communities these days are vastly multicultural
and it is important that all community services workers comply with all of their cultural
obligations when providing service to clients with disabilities who are from varied and
different cultures. It is important to remember that with all people there are a variety of
differences that make us who we are.
CULTURAL OBLIGATIONS
There are a variety of cultural obligations that apply to community services workers
when working with culturally diverse client groups. Some clients may have specific
requirements that may need to be considered when performing interventions and
providing support to ensure that the services provided will be accepted by the client and
the community.
EXAMPLE ABORIGINLS WITH DISABLITY
For example in aboriginal communities all community services workers will need to
consult with the elders and can only provide services that are approved by them
without special clearance. If not the services and actions are likely to be overturned by
the elders as soon as the community services providers leave.
FACTORS IMPACTING ON CULTURAL NEEDS
Factors that may need to be considered include:
 Requirements of particular communities or individuals

 Specialised culturally specific service providers
 Community networks or hierarchies
IMMIGRATION STATUS
There may also be instances where the immigration status of a client will impact on the
types of services that they will be able to access.
Different immigration status types may include:
 Australian resident
 Australian Citizen
 Visitor
 Student
 Refugee
FACTORS THAT MAY IMPACT ON QUALITY SERVICE
Other factors that may need to be considered include:
 Language and literacy levels

 Access to resources and support
 Previous history
 Lack of knowledge of Australian customs and laws
 Major issues such as emotional issues due to loss

IDENTIFY BREACHES OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND RESPOND AND
REPORT ACCORDING TO ORGANISATION PROCEDU RES
Any breaches or non-adherence to standard procedures or the provision of human

rights to a client may have occurred must be reported to appropriate personnel as soon
as reasonably possible.
REPORTING NEEDS
All breaches should be reported no matter how minor they may seem at the time. Any
breach can have serious consequences and it is an ethical responsibility and within your
duty of care to do so.
Reporting breaches is not for the purpose of getting the other worker or yourself in
trouble but it is essential that appropriate personnel are notified so that it can be
managed correctly from this point onwards.
There may be legal ramifications as some issues require mandatory notification from
the community services provider.
BREACHES TO HUMAN RIGHTS
Breaches to the human rights of a client are any actions or activities that are not within
the allowable human rights on a person with a disability.
EXAMPLES OF BREACHES
There are a range of different activities that may result in breaches to the human rights
that are allowable to a person with a disability and these may include:
 Discrimination
 Access and equity issues
 Failure to obtain informed consent
 Failure to provide a person centred environment
 Unprofessional behaviour
 Unfair provision of resources
 Withholding information
 Failure to uphold the privacy of a person with a disability
 Failure to allow personal choice
 Putting the person with a disability at risk
IDENTIFYING BREACHES TO HUMAN RIGHTS
It is essential that there are a range of procedures in place to ensure that all services and
actions that are provided to the client are assessed and evaluated in order to ensure that
any potential breaches are able to be effectively identified.

IDENTIFY INDICATIONS OF POSSIBLE ABUSE AND/OR NEGLECT
AND REPORT ACCORDING TO ORGANISATION PROCEDURE
When dealing with clients it is essential that community services providers are always
paying attention to any potential indicators of harm, neglect, abuse or risk of harm.
Clients that are dealing with these types of risks are often unlikely to just come forward
and talk about it; they often feel ashamed and embarrassed and like this may feel that
the harm, neglect, abuse or risk is their fault.
TYPES OF HARM, ABUSE OR NEGLECT
Harm, neglect, abuse or risk of harm includes:
 Physical
 Emotional
 Cognitive
 Psychological
 Sexual
 Financial
While it is important to remember that any person may be the victim of neglect, abuse
or risk of harm is it also important to be aware of the fact that there are a series of
individuals within the community who may be at a heightened risk. When dealing with
persons who may be vulnerable to these factors it is important to pay particular
attention.
PEOPLE WHO ARE VUNERABLE TO ABUSE
People who are vulnerable and at significant risk may be:
 People with a disability

 People with an acquired brain injury
 Elderly people
 People with mental health issues
 Children and young people
 Babies under one year of age
 Toddlers (children under three years of age)
 People who are homeless
 People in unequal power relationships
ENABLE CLINETS TO COME FOWARD
It is the role of the worker to both provide an environment that enables clients to come
forward but to also ensure that they are always aware of and sensitive to any potential
indicators of these factors.
INDICATORS OF HARM, NEGLECT AND ABUSE
Indicators of harm, neglect, abuse or risk of harm:
 Physical symptoms such as injuries or loss of weight

 Verbal and non- verbal cues
 Impairment to cognitive functioning caused by acquired brain injury such as
loss of memory, inability to concentrate, plan, organise
 Reports from the individual, carers or other workers
 Psychological/emotional indicators
HARM NEGLECT AND ABUSE
Harm, neglect and abuse of putting people at risk of harm may be imposed from a
variety of different individuals that may be involved with or known to the client.
Harm, neglect, abuse or risk of harm may be from:
 Carers
 Workers/service providers
 Self
 Family or significant others
 Community members

RESPONDING TO RISK FACTORS
When responding the indicators of risk, abuse, neglect or risk of harm it is necessary to
ensure that all relevant legislation, organisational and best practice guidelines are
followed at all times. There are a range of different factors that the responses to these
factors must comply with.
Responding to indicators of risk of abuse, neglect or harm will be determined by:
 Legislation
 The specific job role
 Organisation procedures
 Family and cultural mores
REASONABLE RESPONSE
There are a variety of reasonable responses to these alarming factors and it is essential
that all relevant information is taken into consideration when selecting appropriate
responses.
Responding to indicators of risk of abuse, neglect or harm includes:
 Intervention to remove the risk

 Reporting to appropriate personnel
 Investigating
 Seeking specialist support/services
 Referral
 Following State/territory legislative requirements

TOPIC 3 - FACILITATE CHOICE AND
SELF-DETERMINATION
USING A PERSON-CENTRED APPROACH WORK IN A MANNER

THAT ACKNOWLEDGES THE PERSON WITH DISABILITY AS THEIR
OWN EXPERT
Best practice demonstrates that using a person – centred approach to work in a manner
that acknowledges the individuals with disabilities as experts on their own situation.
PERSON-CENTRED PRACTICE
Person-centred approaches to community service delivery are focused directly to the

needs and desires of the specific individual, it has been determined that the most
effective type of community services responses are those that foster a person centred
approach.
STRENGTHS-BASED APPROACH
It is important for the community services worker to develop a relationship with the
client that allows them to understand what motivates and inspires the client and where
the clients develops their own feeling of strength and energy from. These positive
feelings and characteristics must be celebrated and harnessed in order to activate the
strength and energy that a client will require access to in order to be successful over a
long period of time and achieve their goals.
SELF-ADVOCACY
Self-advocacy is the practice of standing up for one’s own rights. Encouraging and
assisting a person with a disability to self-advocate is essential in ensuring self-
determination, empowerment, independence and control. It is important that a person
with a disability is aware of their own, rights and is provided with the support,
information and assistance that they require in order to self-advocate effectively.

ACTIVE SUPPORT
Active communication is a structured communication approach that has been designed

in order to compliment person-centred service delivery.
There are three main components to active communication and these are:
INTERACTING IN A MANNER THAT PROMOTES PARTICIPATION
It is essential to ensure that all support that is provided to persons with a disability are
actively encouraged to take actively participate in the management of their own lives.
ACTIVITY SUPPORT PLANS
Activity support plans are plans that are made with the person with a disability in order
to assist them in the planning and management of their daily life tasks and needs.
KEEPING TRACK
It will be necessary to create a range of simple reporting and tracking documentation

that can be used to assist both the person with the disability and their support staff in
tracking that the required daily tasks were achieved as planned.
ACTIVE LISTENING
Active listening is a support and communication techniques that is used to ensure that
the person with a disability feels listened to a supported.
The principles of active listening involve:
 Paraphrasing
 Smiling and nodding to continue the conversation
 Listening carefully
 Maintaining eye contact

FACILITATE PERSON-CENTRED OPTIONS FOR ACTION ON
RELEVANT ISSUES AND DISCUSS WITH THE PERSON AND/OR
FAMILY AND/OR CARER AND/OR RELEVANT OTHER
It is essential that person centred options for actions on relevant issues are discusses
with the familial, carers and relevant others as required.
THE IMPORTANCE OF INVOLVING FAMILIES, CARERS AND RELEVANT

OTHERS
Working with young people and their families or carers presents a unique set of
challenges and benefits. There are many obstacles that a worker might experience in
such scenarios because the family members and carers are already working on the
person’s behalf before any interaction with the worker and community services.
COMMON OBSTACLES
Some common obstacles that may be encountered are:
 Family members feeling resentment toward the worker

 Family members feeling inadequate at caring for the young person
 Difference of opinion about what is best for the young person
COMMON BENEFITS
Benefits to working with families, carers and relevant others may include:
 The family carer and relevant others have a range of information regarding
the person
 They are able to offer extra support and encouragement
OPTIONS FOR ACTION
Activities and actions need to be structured and sequenced in particular manners for
several reasons. When choosing activities to include on clients plans, workers should
consider the objectives that they plan for the client to reach as well as the client families’
general circumstances.
The activities should:

 Offer outcomes for objectives specific to the clients’ needs
 Likely to be engaging enough to the client to elicit their participation
 Within a capacity that the client and family can commit to actively
engaging in for the duration that is required to reach objectives
PLANNING ACTIONS
The activities and actions need to be completed in sequence in order to:
 Monitor progress and attendance

 Retain the interest and commitment of the clients
 Make adjustments to the plan when needed
DIFFERENT MODES OF SUPPORT FOR DIFFERENT DISABILITIES
Each different type of disability will come with a range of different support needs and it
is essential that the support needs for each of the main types of causal factors for each
disability stream are known.
GENETIC FACTORS
When people are affected by genetic disabilities it is essential that they are connected to
a range of networks and specialists for each type of genetic disorder. It is essential that
the person with a genetic disability is provided with the specific type of support
required for that type of genetic disability and also is surrounded by a range of
personnel that clearly understand the disability.
People with genetic disorders can have fulfilling lives with the correct types of aides,
education and support. Special types of educational activities that have been developed
for people with each type of genetic disorder in order to assist them in overcoming the
series of challenges that they will face in light of their specific disability.
PHYSICAL TRAUMA
When dealing with people that are learning to manage or continuing to manage a
disability that they have not had since birth it will be necessary to ensure that a range of
compassionate understanding and counselling is provided to the person in order to
enable them to best deal with their disability.

Dealing with a disability from physical trauma can be frustrating for the person with the
disability and many of them experience difficulty in gaining their required access to
health and rehabilitation services that will assist them in participating effectively within
society.
Injury related impairments may include:
 Paralysis of one or more of the limbs and parts of the body

 Amputation or deformation of limbs
 Psychological trauma
 Blindness and/or deafness
PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAUMA
When a person is suffering from psychological trauma it is essential to ensure that they
are offered appropriate support and are taught a range of techniques that can assist
them in managing the trauma and working through it.
Counselling is extremely important in dealing with psychological trauma and works best
when paired with a range of lifestyle changes and enhancements.
It is important that people recovering from trauma are provided with education and
support options that will enable them to make positive changes in their lives and equip
them with the skills and knowledge required to manage trauma effectively.
CHRONIC LIFESTYLE CONDITIONS
Chronic lifestyle conditions such as smoking, drinking or obesity that is a causing a

range of medical and other lifestyle complication to a person need to be effectively
management through a multifaceted treatment that includes:
 Access to services required

 Medical support as required
 Counselling
 Education
 Support

ACQUIRED BRAIN INJURY
It will be necessary to ensure that people that have acquired a brain injury are provided
with the support required for them to function within society and to manage their
disability in the most productive and appropriate manner.
There are a range of services that may be required for a person with an acquired brain
injury and these may include:
 Access to services required

 Medical support as required
 Counselling
 Education
 Support
 Employment
 Housing

PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO THE PERSON WITH DISABILITY TO
FACILITATE COMMUNICATION OF THEIR PERSONAL GOALS
Appropriate person centred communication techniques will need to be engaged and

used in order to correctly engage with a person with a disability to assist them in the
communication of their personal goals.
COMMUNICATING WITH PERSONS WITH A DISABLITY
When you are communicating with a person with a disability it is important to be

yourself, be friendly and engaging and professional.
Make sure you:
 Maintain eye contact

 Ask the person questions about what they want, need and feel
 Speak directly to the person and not to a support worker or family member
 Never speak about the person as though they are not there
 Always ask them if they can do things rather than assuming that they cannot
Communication should be motivational and respectful, treat the person as an individual

and ensure that they have a say in what type of learning goals are chosen for them and
how these goals will be achieved. It is important to work with the person not to tell the
person what to do.
COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUES
Communication techniques to assist a person with a disability to identify their learning

goals could include:
 Direct questioning
 Open Questions
 Active listening
 Rapport building
 Trust building
 Empathy
 Trust building

PERSON CENTERED COMMUNICATION
It is essential that communication is person centred and aimed at assisting the client to
identify their own goals and make their own decisions as much as possible. Sometime it
will be necessary to guide and assist clients to see what types of learning opportunities
may benefit them the most. It is important that all communication is respectful and
aides the client in making good decisions for their own future.
IDENTIFYING GOALS OF A PERSON WITH A DISABILITY
The process of identifying goals and indicators of achievement of a person with a

disability should be a negotiation between the person and the service worker assigned
to them.
The inclusion of other parties should also be negotiated with the client as opposed to
simply informing them that someone else will be involved without giving the client any
say in the matter.
GOALS
Goals should be specific in nature and outline what they want to achieve overall with the
course of action that will be undertaken.
The goals that people with a disability choose for themselves should be:
 in accordance with the ethical framework and organisational guidelines of the

service provider
 Aligned with objectives that will meet the clients the needs
 Work toward meeting the clients need
 Build their confidence in their ability to self-plan and take control of their
own lives and decisions

PROVIDE PERSON-CENTRED SUPPORT IN A MANNER THAT
ENCOURAGES AND EMPOWERS THE PERSON WITH DISABILITY
TO MAKE THEIR OWN CHOICES
It is essential to ensure that all support that is provided to the person with a disability is
provided in a manner that encourages and empowers the person with a disability to
make their own choices.
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTAINENCE PLANS
Formal person centred skills development and maintenance plans will need to be
developed using appropriate methodology for the particular client.
They may need to be developed in conjunction with relevant personnel and the client
themselves.
Relevant people may include:
 Advocate/s
 Behavioural consultants (for acquired brain injury)
 Carers
 Development officers
 Disability support worker
 Educational psychologists
 Employment officers
 Occupational therapists
 Outreach worker
 Programming staff
 Teachers
 Technicians
SUPPORT AND ENCOURAGE EFFECTIVE DECSION MAKING
It is important that a community services worker focuses on the needs and motivators
of a client in order to find ways to guide their strength and energy in a way that
maintains positive direction, corporation, achievements and respect, and active decision
making of the client.

GUIDE STRENGTHS AND ENERGY OF CLIENTS
It is important for the community services worker to develop a relationship with the
client that allows them to what motivates and inspires the client and where the clients
develops their own feeling of strength and energy from. These positive feelings and
characteristics must be celebrated and harnessed in order to activate the strength and
energy that a client will require access to in order to be successful over a long period of
time and achieve their goals.
MAINTAIN POSITIVE DIRECTION
It is important to constantly motivate and align the client with in a positive direction in
regards to their own personal performance and goals that have been mutually set. This
can include strategies of talking about the person’s strengths and how good the goal will
be for them and encouraging the motivating factors that they had previously noted
when the initial goal was set.
COOPERATION
This can be gained through mutual respect and trust and reinforcing the fact that you
are there to help them, that you believe in them, that you have been with them this far
and trying to get them to feel like they are part of a team while maintaining their own
individualism, goals and needs.
ACHIEVEMENTS
Celebrating past achievements and helping to set stepping stones towards future
achievements can help a client in reaching their achievements. It is important that they
feel sure and confident that they can achieve the goals and realise the importance and
benefit to self in achieving them.
RESPECT
Treating the client with respect and setting boundaries to ensure that they treat you
with respect is a good method for this. In many instances a client may not have
experienced respect in many occasions throughout their life and may not realise how
beneficial and positive this can be. Encouraging them to respect others and importantly
themselves is very important.

ASSIST WITH STRATEGIES TO ENSURE THAT THE PERSON IS
COMFORTABLE WITH ANY DECISIONS THAT ARE BEING MADE
ON THEIR BEHALF
It is essential to ensure that a range of strategies are put in place to ensure that people
with a disability are comfortable with any decision that are being made on their behalf.
INFORMED CONSENT
Informed consent is one of the principles and rights of supporting people with
disabilities. It is essential to ensure that a person with a disability is given all of the
information that they required in order to make informed decisions regarding medical
and other types of support that they may receive throughout service provision.
Informed consent can only be provided by a client when they have all of the required
information and that they understand all of the information.
It is important to ensure that all people with a disability are provided with the right to
make informed decisions regarding their own treatment and services.
EXPLAININIG OPTIONS CLEARLY TO PERSONS WITH A DISABLITY
It is essential that all of the benefits and requirements of each option are clearly
explained to the person with a disability so that they are able to feel comfortable with
any decisions that are being made on their behalf.
MAKING REFERRALS ON BEHALF OF A CLIENT
Prior to making a referral you should ask the client if they know what service options
are available to them and provide them with this information. You may need to explain
what the different types of advocacy services could do for them and what the process
will be, as this may make an impact on which advocacy service that they choose to use at
this time.
Ensuring that the client is active in the decision making process when selecting the right
advocate goes a long way towards ensuring that the referrals process is a comfortable
and beneficial experience for the client. Active participation in selecting the correct
advocate for their own needs also contributes to the clients feeling of power over what
happens to them and their own process of becoming more independent.
TRUST AND RESPECT
Gaining trust and building rapport with people with a disability is one of the keys to
successfully delivering services to clients in a way that they feel comfortable with
decisions that are made on their behalf.
With the correct amount of rapport building and mutual trust a service worker should
be able to get a clear picture of the client’s circumstances.
The circumstances are very informative for the worker. The circumstances will, in many
cases tell the worker what issues the client may be facing or be at risk of facing. Workers
should be aware of issues that common in the area of service in which they work, so that
they can more easily identify issues and therefore make better decisions on behalf of the
client.

ASSIST WITH ACCESSING ADVOCACY SERVICES AND OTHER
COMPLAINT MECHANISMS AS REQUIRED
WHAT IS ADVOCACY?
Advocacy is the action of supporting and assisting a person who may not be able to or
feel comfortable standing up for their own rights to identify and voice their own needs
of concerns.
When working in a disability support role within the community services environment
with people with a disability it will be necessary for the disability care worker to
undertake a range of advocacy activities with and for the people with a disability to
ensure that their rights to appropriate culturally safe treatment and support within the
community services environment is achieved.
ADVOCACY SCOPE OF RESPONSIBLITY
It is within the scope of responsibility for both the person with the disability themselves
and the disability worker to advocate and maintain an environment that empowers and
supports their clients.
ADVOCACY ACTIONS
Advocacy actions for people with a disability may include:
 Enhance and encourage the independence and ‘self-determination’ of a client

 Encourage the client to speak up when they have concerns
 Assist the client to make decisions for themselves
 Assist clients to identify their own rights and needs
 Assist clients to take actions to ensure that their own rights and needs are met
 Advocate within the community environment to ensure that these needs are met
 Advocate to ensure that the person with a disability has access to treatment and
support that they require and have the rights to
MINIMISING CONFLICT IN ADVOCACY ACTIONS
It is important for the disability worker to perform these advocacy activities in a

respectful and professional manner and to employ a range of strategies to effectively
manage any conflict or resistance that may arise from advocacy activities.

When advocating for people within the professional and community services sector it is
possible that the other staff and people within the community may feel that your
advocacy is for the person with a disability goes against either their actions or beliefs or
that of their colleagues.
It is important to make it clear to all persons involved that you are doing your job and
that the rights of all people with a disability must be upheld but to do this in a way that
does not seem like an attack on current protocols or the workers themselves.
ADVOCACY SERVICES AND COMPLAINT MECHANISMS
It is essential that all disability workers and the people with a disability are aware of the
advocacy services that are available for clients.
ACCESS PROCEDURES
Each different type of advocacy service will have a different set of access procedures and
it is essential that these are identified and utilised as required.
Access procedures may include:
 Direct contact
 Referral
 Online access
 Applying through formal applications

SUMMARY
Now that you have completed this unit, you should have the skills and knowledge
required to facilitate the empowerment of people with disability to deliver rights based
services using a person-centred approach. It should be carried out in conjunction with
individualised plans.
If you have any questions about this resource, please ask your trainer. They will be only
too happy to assist you when required.

REFERENCES
What is disability?
Retrieved: 23 September 2015
http://www.disability.wa.gov.au/understanding-disability1/understanding-
disability/what-is-disability/
Acquired brain injury
Retrieved: 23 September
https://www.qld.gov.au/disability/community/acquired-brain-injury/
Sensory impairments
http://www.onetoonesupportservices.co.uk/Deafblind%20sensory%20impairments%
20definitions.htm
Psychological Trauma
http://www.helpguide.org/articles/ptsd-trauma/emotional-and-psychological-
trauma.htm
Active support
http://www.ideas.org.au/uploads/resources/245/Active-Support-Handbook.pdf
Social justice
http://www.cesj.org/learn/definitions/defining-economic-justice-and-social-justice/
Disability
http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/disability/en/
Genetic disorders
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Genetic_disorders


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CHCDIS007

FACILITATE THE EMPOWERMENT OF PEOPLE

TOPIC 3 - FACILITATE CHOICE AND SELF-DETERMINATION ............................................................................. 41

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 5

This unit applies to workers in varied disability contexts.

ABOUT THIS RESOURCE

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 6

Throughout your training we are committed to your learning by providing a training

You are going to be assessed for:

Your assessment may be conducted through a combination of the following methods:

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 7

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 8

1.3 Reflect on personal values and attitudes regarding

1.4 Develop and adjust own approaches to facilitate

2.2 Deliver services that ensure the rights and needs of

2.3 Ensure the cultural needs of the person are

2.4 Identify breaches of human rights and respond and

2.5 Identify indications of possible abuse and/or

3.2 Facilitate person-centred options for action on

3.3 Provide assistance to the person with disability to

3.4 Provide person-centred support in a manner that

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 9

3.6 Assist with accessing advocacy services and other

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 10

The candidate must be able to demonstrate essential knowledge required to effectively

 History and recent developments in disability

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 12

The following conditions must be met for this unit:

 access to individualised plans and any equipment outlined in the plan

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 13

IDENTIFY CHANGES IN THE LEGAL, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 14

PERSON-CENTRED PLANNING VS INSTITUTIONALIZATION

The Disability Services Act (1993) defines ‘disability’ as meaning a disability:

which is attributable to an intellectual, psychiatric, cognitive, neurological, sensory or

ACQUIRED BRAIN INJURY

Acquired brain injuries can be caused by a range of different factors including:

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 16

People on the autism spectrum may present a range of characteristics including:

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 17

There are a range of different causes for this including:

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 18

Sensory disabilities include impairments to:

LEGAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR WORKING WITH PEOPLE WITH

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 19

Legal requirements and duty of care obligations include:

Child protection requires knowledge of relevant state mandatory reporting legislation

PRIVACY, CONFIDENTIALITY AND DISCLOSURE

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 20

WORK HEALTH AND SAFETY

 Discrimination code of practice

WORK ROLE BOUNDARIES – RESPONSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS

Work role boundaries, responsibilities and limitations may include:

 Agreed policies and procedures

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 22

IDENTIFY WAYS SOCIETY CAN AFFECT THE LEVEL OF

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 23

It is important to remember that a person with a disability is able to lead a fully

SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING AND RESPECTING

ACCESS AND EQUITY

 Ensuring that individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

Developed by Enhance Your Future Pty Ltd 24

THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING AND RESPECTING EACH PERSON AS AN INDIVIDUAL