Perth Disability sector armed with strategies to tackle challenges of Royal Commission

On March 12, Grant Thornton held a roundtable event to hear the views of 15 of Western Australia’s leading Disability Service providers, on the upcoming Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability.

The event, which is part of a national series of roundtables held across Australia between March and June 2019, unearthed the major concerns of Disability Service providers - who have seen the impact of the Aged Care Royal Commission.

“The Royal Commission will likely bring a range of issues to the table which Perth’s Disability Service providers welcome, but at the same time they are worried about the angst it will create amongst the community and also the immense disruption to business – their worries are based on their observations from the Aged Care Royal Commission,” Darrell Price, National Head of Health & Aged Care, Grant Thornton, said. 

Disability Service providers are likely to come into the spotlight through the Royal Commission process and Grant Thornton specialists attending the roundtable event shared insights and learnings – from their experience supporting clients in preparing responses requested by the Aged Care Royal Commission – which could help Disability Service providers more efficiently prepare for what lies ahead.

 “Organisations will need to consider governance arrangements and look at all aspects of their business, if they are ultimately going to improve quality and safety of the services they provide.”

“Early preparation is crucial to efficiently navigating this process. From data gathering, to how each organisation will preserve good culture, these are all aspects Disability Service providers must act on now.”

Despite concerns raised by the Disability Service providers attending the Perth event, there was an overwhelming belief that this Royal Commission presents an opportunity to improve the industry through reviews of the sector itself, the funding model, the resourcing model and how operators fit within a quality and safety framework.

The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability marks the seventh Royal Commission in the last six years. It is aimed at stopping people with a disability experiencing violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and will look at all groups which provide services to people with a disability.

For more information or guidance through the Royal Commission process contact Grant Thornton’s Health & Aged Care team. 

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Further enquiries, please contact:

Therese Raft
National Communications Manager
Grant Thornton

T +61 2 8297 2724
E therese.raft@au.gt.com