Family Forum April - Post session info

Dear clients and families,

Thank you to those of you who attended our recent Family Forum sessions. As always, they were a wonderful opportunity for us to hear from you and continue our journey to be the best quality disability support provider in Tasmania.

Throughout these sessions, we talked about some changes to the key relationship management model within SIL services that Mosaic will be implementing. This change will happen in June and will result in more Program Managers across SIL, with less sites under their management. This will mean more consistent and engaged support for clients and an increase in communications with families and guardians. We are currently working through these changes with our SIL team and all families and guardians will be contacted shortly in relation to any key relationship changes.

In addition, there were a number of questions raised and we have taken the time to address each of these for you. Please see the questions and our answers below.

Can individual Mosaic sites have their own newsletter?
Mosaic is now committed to and has begun trialling the new SIL Communication Newsletters at a handful of our locations. If deemed successful, this will be rolled out across all sites. More information to come.

What are you doing about the errors in invoicing?
Mosaic’s new Post Implementation Project team are working on ensuring all invoicing functions are reviewed as a matter of priority. Mosaic staff are also contacting all affected families to amend their accounts as soon as possible.

Is Mosaic running flu shot sessions for clients?
Mosaic is not coordinating any internal programs for flu shots, however, each individual SIL house will be liaising with families for consent and arrange shots through the client's GP or Pharmacy where consent is given.

Is Mosaic running COVID-19 Booster shot sessions for clients?
Mosaic is not coordinating any internal programs for COVID-19 Booster shots, however, each individual SIL house will be liaising with families for consent and arrange shots through the client's GP or Pharmacy where consent is given.

Why are some Disability Support Workers not wearing masks when supporting clients?
We would like to assure our clients and families that all Mosaic employees have been reminded of their responsibility to wear a mask when working with Mosaic clients. You can read this reminder below.
'As we are still seeing high numbers of cases of COVID-19 in the community, it is highly recommended that you wear a face mask in Mosaic offices and meeting rooms. You must continue to wear a mask when providing support to our clients, including during transportation. Visitors to our sites are also required to wear face masks, this includes family members.'

Do clients have to wear a mask at Mosaic?
No, however, clients are being encouraged to wear masks, especially in our Community Access programs. As this is not a mandated Public Health directive, clients are within their rights to choose not to wear a mask, and they don’t have to wear one in their homes. Masks are still required to be worn on public transport and in ride-shares (taxis, Ubers, etc.). Exemptions do apply in some situations.

Can SIL houses be given a copy of the Calendar of events to get involved with?
We have noted the interest shown by our SIL clients and will ensure all new items on the Mosaic Calendar of Events will be provided to all SIL clients and families by their Program Manager on a regular basis.

Can information about Mosaic Camps and their safety protocols be distributed earlier to help us make decisions about attending?
Mosaic is reviewing our current camp processes, with the intention of improving the communication between camp organisers and families. All recent camp attendees will be asked for feedback to help inform our new process. More information to come.

Can we hear from someone from the NDIS Commission at our next Family Forum?
We sure hope so! This outcome is to be confirmed pending NDIS Commission’s response to our invitation, however, we have made contact and hope to be able to have them attend as a guest speaker at our next Family Forum. We understand families would like to know more about restrictive practices and positive behaviour support.

Are there any helpful resources about restrictive practices?
Yes! Click here to view some helpful resources. You can also view the easy read version here!

Can we hear from Tasmanian Civil & Administrative Tribunal (TasCAT) or the Office of Senior Practitioner at our next Family Forum?
This outcome is to be confirmed pending responses to our invitation, however, we have made contact and hope to be able to have them attend as a guest speaker at a future Family Forum. Meanwhile, TasCAT has some resources regarding guardianship and administration orders that you may find useful – click here

I'm interested in Respite but don't know how my person would find it, can we trial it or drop in for a visit?
Our Respite Teams are excited and working towards hosting ‘open sessions’ at our respite venues. Our team are currently assessing resources and logistics around this and we will provide an update as this progresses.

Handover at the end of the day is difficult and not very informative, can you make this better?
Our Teams have been reminded about the importance of a thorough handover. We hope this helps families and we will look to gain further feedback on this from you at our next Family Forum. If you are currently not using a communication book and would like to start, please contact your Program Manager or Mosaic contact.

It's hard to submit a plan review without all the pieces of the puzzle. Can you make sure all Incidents (no matter how small) are recorded?
Our Teams have been reminded about the importance of thorough notes and incident reporting, and we have reiterated the culture of 'no blame, just progress'. We hope this helps families and assists at plan renewal time. We will look to gain further feedback at our next Family Forum.

Have there been changes to the NDIS Act?
Yes, you can read all about the changes here!

If you have any other questions please contact your Program Manager or trusted Mosaic contact.

Kind Regards,
Mosaic Support Services