Health practitioners have a critical role to play in assisting people with disability to leave hospital well and return to their homes or to suitable housing in the community.
More than 2,000 younger Australians with disability enter Residential Aged Care (RAC) every year – that’s around 6 people every day!
As a result, almost 6,000 younger Australians with disability currently live in RAC, a life characterised by loneliness and isolation.
Improving the way that hospitals and the NDIS work together to support people with disability to leave hospital and return to their community is key to keeping them out of aged care.
The Summer Foundation has been delivering projects, training and resources within mainstream health systems since 2016, with the aim of reducing RAC admission rates and the length of time spent in hospital, improving housing outcomes and providing younger people with disability with the support they need to live well in the community.
These projects focus on:
• Increasing workforce capacity across sectors
• Helping navigate the NDIS and health interface through resource development
• Re-designing and streamlining the interface between sectors
• Building collaboration across sectors
Resources for health professionals
Community of Practice
The Summer Foundation has set up a national Community of Practice for health practitioners, aiming to grow skills and share experiences of successful discharge planning outcomes. Find out more and how you can join >
We also offer training for health services. For information on upcoming events click on the link(s) below:
Online training – Q&A >
Our current projects
Redesigning the Hospital – NDIS Pathway
The focus of this project is on re-designing and streamlining the interface between health and the NDIS. Streamlined outcomes have included early access decisions and planning as well as early support coordination with close collaboration between hospital staff and the local NDIS team. This 3-year project is currently in its third year and is starting to produce some good outcomes for younger people with disability and complex care needs. Read more
Leaving Hospital Well: Health Collaboration Project – Victoria
This project recognises that improved outcomes for the cohort from hospital to home rely on collaboration and cross sector linkages between all mainstream services including health, NDIA, support coordination, aged care sector, housing providers, disability and advocacy organisations.
Leaving Hospital Well: Collaborative Discharge Approach – South West Sydney
The NDIS represents a significant change in how patients with disability and complex support needs are funded for their ongoing disability supports. This project aims to demonstrate an approach for achieving positive outcomes for participants in hospitals that can be replicated across Australia.
The key benefits of this project are:
• Timely access to the NDIS
• Early approval of key NDIS supports, including support coordination
• Individual assistance to specify housing needs and source housing solutions
• Development of transitional arrangements for support and housing where required
Our past projects
The Summer Foundation’s current work, resources and training delivered in this space have been informed by past projects, including:
Hospital Discharge Forums 2016 – Read more
Hospital Discharge Readiness Project – Read more
NDIS Readiness for Hospitals Project – Read more
Through these projects, a wide range of materials have been produced and training packages delivered across Australia to more than 3,500 participants.