South Australians are being called on to help address a common fear among parents about what will happen to their child with a disability when they can no longer care for them.
In his Discussion Paper, Future Safeguarding for People with Disabilities, independent Disability Advocate, David Caudrey delves into potential ideas, programs, services and possible legislative changes which could be put into place to safeguard people living with disability further.
Dr Caudrey said there needed to be greater focus on families being better informed about the services organisations provided so they knew there was somewhere they could go for help when planning the future wellbeing of a person with high support needs.
He said the best safeguard for any potentially vulnerable individual with a disability was to have a number of people in their lives who would make sure they were not left to their own devices when things went wrong.
“An extra pair of eyes can notice if a person’s situation has changed or if something doesn’t look right and can act accordingly,” the Advocate said.
“However, many people with disabilities do not have this family support network.”
Dr Caudrey said the Discussion Paper identified a number of possible initiatives that address the safeguarding question by regarding the ways other caring people could be in the life of a person with a disability after their parents had passed away.
He said the common questions to be explored in the study included how parents could make provision for their son or daughter with disability so they would be well cared for after the parents were no longer around; who could be relied upon to care that a person with a disability would be OK if parents were too frail or had passed away; the role circles of support might play in future safeguarding of people with disability; and the roles siblings could play when parents were no longer around and what supports they might need.
The final report, including recommendations, is expected to be handed down to the Minister for Human Services in December.
Consultation is open until 3 December and the 25-page Discussion Paper can be downloaded from the Office of the Public Advocate website at this PS News link.
