South Australian Council on Intellectual Disability AGM
23/09/2010
Keynote Address
Intro
Thank you for asking me here
It has been harder than I ever expected to do this job, because the level of Unmet Needs is HUGE – I knew that we had a problem but I never expected the extent and depth of despair amongst our community. A few weeks ago the Government released the latest figures relating to Unmet Needs – and these figures were frightening.. quite simply … We need action now…. and action means money. I am here to talk about those unmet needs…
I am certain that all of us here accept that our State’s Disability Services Act is inadequate and needs an overhaul and I am here to talk about some of what needs to be done.
Of course the overhaul cannot happen overnight, there is a lot of work to be done, so in the mean time I have introduced a bill which seeks to protect the most vulnerable people in our community, a stop gap measure of sorts and I am here to talk about this Bill.
Now I may be young, but it seems to me that something wonderful is happening in Australia, it has been a long time coming but disability is fast becoming a mainstream issue (which is not surprising considering that 20% of us live with disability). I am here to talk about our collective hope for the future and what we can achieve.
Need for action NOW – Unmet Needs
A few weeks ago, while our nation held its collective breath waiting to see who would form government, Minister Rankine issued a press release heralding the government’s efforts towards bettering the lives of people with disabilities and their families in South Australia.
At that time the Minister also released the Unmet Needs data, as at June 2010, and this data showed that the Government does a terrible job when it comes to addressing the needs of some of the most vulnerable people in our community.
This data shows that there are now more people waiting for in home support services, supported accommodation, respite and ….
Despite this data, Minister Rankine told us of the 239 mums, dads, brothers and sisters who were better enjoying their lives because of ‘help’ provided by the Government.
While I commend the Minister for helping these people, I can’t help but think of the scores of other families who are still waiting for their needs to be met, people who are waiting for services which will help to accord them some dignity.
I met with the Treasurer to discuss the level of unmet need in our community, and whilst he seemed to understand that there is great need out there, he was not willing to prioritise this need, or rather our people’s needs, he indicated that there was not enough money to go around.
I guess that is where I disagree – if there is enough money to spend over $500 million on a football stadium, or to increase MP’s super then there is enough money to ensure that …………. our brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers are accorded the simple things that we take for granted.
I know that this Government is not willing to prioritise the needs of our most vulnerable people, I’ve seen the budget papers which provide a paltry 29 additional supported accommodation places.. when over about 1000 are required.
Inadequacy of our Disability Services Act
It is clear that our current Disability Services Act is inadequate and this is one area that my office is tackling. One only needs to look across the border to Victoria for some guidance. Of course I do not have time to go through all of our Act’s inadequacies, I will just focus on a couple of ways that they do it better in Victoria.
While both Acts set out the rights of PWD and list the objectives that each state wishes to achieve in the funding and provision of disability programs and research services, the Victorian Act goes much further in establishing what I call disability centred authorities such as the Victorian Disability Advisory Council which advises the Minister on whole of Government policy and strategies for inclusion with regards to PWD. While we have a Ministerial Advisory Council here, it exists by virtue of the Minister, not the law.
The Victorian Act also establishes the Disability Services Commissioner whose role is to investigate complaints about disability services. While we have the Health and Community Services Complaints Services Complaints Commissioner in SA the Commissioner has limited capacity to follow up on complaints, is not disability focussed and is really only to be used as an office of last resort.
Not only does the Victorian Act establish the Disability Services Commissioner but it also establishes the Disability Services Board whose role is to refer matters to the Disability Services Commissioner, provide expert advice to the Commissioner and advise the Minister on the effectiveness of the Commissioner’s complaints handling- providing an additional check on the Disability Services Commissioner.
In addition, the Victorian Act establishes the Senior Practitioner, a clinically qualified person who is responsible for protecting the rights of persons subject to compulsory treatment and restrictive intervention orders. This person provides advice to service providers and gives directions regarding persons subject to behaviour management and treatment plans. The Senior Practitioner sees it as part of his role to support people with disabilities to achieve dignity without constraints and takes a rights based approach to people with disabilities, as opposed to the paternalistic approach of many.
Then of course, the Victorians have Community Visitors who are established under the Act and whose role is to inspect residential facilities. Now whilst there are standards set and council monitoring in place for our supported residential facilities under our Supported Residential Facilities Act, we all know that our system is often inadequate and fails to protect the interests of our people in licensed Supported Residential Facilities.
Of course the Community Visitors are not alone, the Act also establishes a Community Visitors’ Board which represents community visitors, trains them and receives reports from them.
I understand that these authorities cost money, but I would consider it money well spent, a real investment in our people, in our state. Lets face it we should be judged by the way in which we treat (and indeed support) our most vulnerable people. Oh and if we have enough in the Government coffers to spend $530 million on a football stadium, surely we have enough to ensure the dignity of our most vulnerable.
Mandatory Reporting Bill
So what is my office doing about all of this.. well I am one person in Parliament with two staff members and there is a lot to be done. We are taking the Government to task about the level of Unmet Need in our community, through media coverage, questions in parliament and letters and meetings with the Minister (and the Treasurer). But we are not only watching and speaking out. I have introduced the Mandatory Reporting Bill into the Parliament, which seeks to protect the our most vulnerable people.
What does Bill do?
It protects vulnerable people in society by requiring a large number of people who work/volunteer with people with disabilities to report suspicions of neglect or abuse – in same vain as Children’s Protection Act.
The Bill also protects those people who make notifications and provides hefty penalties for not reporting.
At this stage the Bill requires the Executive to take appropriate responsive action and I will be introducing amendments to strengthen this, so that the Minister for Disability will be required to report directly to the Parliament.
Why do we need it?
Studies show that PWD are more at risk of unreported sexual and physical abuse, and this Bill if enacted will help to ensure that abuse or neglect does not go unreported.
This Bill will also raise awareness in the public that PWD are subject (and often targeted) to abuse and neglect.
Of course we also need to protect our workers/volunteers from negative repercussions following reporting
Who does Act apply to?
This is probably the most contentious part of this Bill – and the part that has raised most concern in our community – who do we include? I have taken the middle ground here.
The Bill applies to those in our community with physical disability who cannot or are likely to be unable to communicate abuse or neglect.
It also applies to people with intellectual disability who is likely to be unable to understand the nature of abuse or neglect.
In concluding..We have come a long way..Who would have thought when I was born that:
- A 21 year old woman with a disability could win a seat in parliament; or that
- Disability would be a policy platform of major parties; or that
- We would be discussing a national disability insurance scheme; or that
We have come a long way in a short time.. and while we still have a long way to go.. I have great hope for our future.. I am determined to make a difference .. I am Kelly Vincent and I thank you for listening.. (totally corny, but it had to be said!)
