CE News: Participant Survey Results

Participants are overwhelmingly satisfied with the Lifetime Support Scheme

In late 2016 the first participant survey was undertaken by the University of South Australia. Participants who had been in the Scheme for greater than 6 months were invited to take part. Thank you so much to all participants who contributed, your assistance is greatly appreciated and critical to the ongoing improvement and success of the Scheme.

What participants consistently said about the Scheme:

• Flexible and participant-centred.
• Shared decision-making between them and their service planner.
• Issues are resolved to their satisfaction.
• Very positive impact on their health and well-being.

The relationship between you and your service planner is critical to participant satisfaction of the Scheme. The LSA is committed to ongoing positive relationships, so if there is a problem please talk to us.

The 2016 survey also highlighted some areas we can work on:

Scheme Awareness

Participants said that health, rehabilitation and disability professionals and the wider community have limited knowledge of the Scheme.

The LSA will:

• Hold regular information sessions for key groups.
• Make changes to the LSA’s website to increase information accessibility.
• Establish a participant led newsletter.
• Continue participation in community events to increase LSA’s exposure, like the International Day for People with Disability.
• Establish the LSA Legends program.

Minimising Approval Delays

Participants raised that, in some instances, there was a prolonged period between identifying a treatment, care or support need and the service being provided.

The LSA will:

• Communicate in a timely manner the anticipated timeframes for service commencement.
• Work with service providers to ensure the timely provision of information required to assess if a service is necessary and reasonable.
• Develop a flowchart that explains the LSA’s process for approvals.
• Add a section on the participant portal for weekly service planner updates.

Timely Communication

Participants raised the importance of timely communication about what treatment, care and support the Scheme can fund, especially when they are transitioning back home.

The LSA will:

• Develop new information sheets with the Participant Reference Group including stories about participant journeys with the LSA, to put the available supports in context for people.
• Create audio files with information for participants and families that are available on the website.
• Host information sharing events and forums for participants and their families.

> Download Survey Results PDF [ 63kb ]