Department of Health and Human Services

HOUSING, DISABILITY AND COMMUNITY SEVICES

DHHSOutcomes Framework

Sector Development Fund - Tasmanian Projects 2016-2018

Project 2 - Sector Workforce Development:

Part 1: Build an allied health workforce in regional/rural/remote areas of Tasmania with expertise in disability and multidisciplinary approaches to positive behaviour supports.

Context / DHHS Outcomes Purchasing Framework
There is an increasing focus nationally and internationally on measuring client outcomes. Having a stronger focus on client outcomes means less emphasis on inputs and activities and more on the outcomes resulting from the activities and inputs. This approach has significant benefits for government, service providers, clients and the broader community.
DHHS funds a range of community organisations to deliver services to improve the health, safety and wellbeing of Tasmanians. There are strong systems in place to manage financial management and Quality and Safety and now the Department has developed a structured way to describe and monitor the outcomes that services or projects are funded to provide and aiming to deliver for their clients.
Disability Services Program
There are approximately 80 funded disability support providers in Tasmania providing support to around 6500 Tasmanians under the state-based disability services program. This program will phase out over the next three years as the National Disability Insurance Scheme rolls out to full scheme.
National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
The NDIS is the new way of providing disability support for Australians under the age of 65 who have a permanent and significant disability. It will provide the reasonable and necessary supports they need to enjoy an ordinary life. As an insurance scheme, the NDIS takes a lifetime approach, investing in people with disability early to improve their outcomes later in life. By 2019, the NDIS will support about 460,000 Australians.
The NDIS is co-funded by States and Territories and the Commonwealth and administered by independent statutory agency, the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).
The Tasmanian Government is committed to rolling out the NDIS to full scheme in a carefully managed and sustainable way. Existing service users and new participants will enter the scheme progressively as follows:
  • from 1July2016 the scheme will expand to include young people aged 12-14
  • from 1January2017 the scheme will expand to include people aged 25-28
  • from 1July 2017 the scheme will expand to include young people aged 4-11
  • from 1January2018 the scheme will expand to include people aged 29-34
  • from 1July 2018 the scheme will expand to include people aged 0-3 and 35-49
  • from 1January2019 the scheme will expand to include people aged 50-64
  • by 1July 2019all eligible Tasmanians aged 0-64 will become NDIS participants
It is anticipated that around 10600 Tasmanians will be in the NDIS by 30June2019.
Sector Development Fund
The Sector Development Fund (SDF) is a fund available through the Commonwealth to support transition to the NDIS until 30 June 2018.
The aim of the SDF is to support market, sector, and workforce transition to the NDIS through funding activities that assist individuals and organisations to:
  • create an efficient, responsive and innovative market that meeds the diverse needs of people with disability and their families
  • support people with disability to effectively exercise choice and control.

Explaining the Outcomes Hierarchy / The DHHS Outcomes Framework establishes a hierarchy of outcomes using the methodology of Results Based Accountability[1]
At the top are Population Outcomes.These are the intended, long term outcomes that we want to positively impact through our funded programsand/orservices. Our funded services should contribute to these population outcomes in order to improve the lives of individuals, families and communities in Tasmania.
The next level of the hierarchy is Program Outcomes.These are the outcomes specific to the funded program and/or service provider. These program outcomes have three domains that enable us to better understand and measure performance:
  • Change – is anyone better off?
  • Intermediate – how well did we do it?
  • Outputs – how much did we do?
Joining this all together is a Theory of Change. This describes the unique assumptions, pre-conditions and contextual factors that underpinthe outcomes hierarchy including external factors that impact on the achievement of outcomes.
Explaining the Performance Measures / Performance indicators (PIs) are quantifiable data items that provide a valid and reliable indication of achievement against outcomes.Referenced against a standardor target, they define the expected level of performance.
Targets are used to compare the current performance of the service against agreed expectations – such as a baseline from previous years. Where setting a baseline is difficult, for example if the service is new, an interim target may be agreed. This could take the form of an informed guess, estimating what can be achieved.
Performance indicators will be used by DHHS to inform partnership discussions about the efficiency and effectiveness of the service.
The impact of external factors / External factors that influence the Tasmanian community can impact on the capacity of funded services to achieve the intended change for their clients.
These external factors are mostly beyond the direct influence or control of a service and include things such as: unemployment rates; supply of appropriate affordable housing; availability of support services; NDIA policy etc.
Relevant external factors need to be considered when assessing the performance of a funded service.

Clearance of V1.0

Prepared by / Carolan Hands / Senior Program Officer / 6166 3575
Cleared by
Department of Health and Human Services
HOUSING, DISABILITY AND COMMUNITY SEVICES
Commissioning for Outcomes Statement

Program Name: Project 2 -Sector Workforce Development:Part 1 Build capacity of Allied Health workforce

Program Type: Sector Development Fund – Tasmanian Projects 2016-2018

Funded Organisation/s:To be determined

Outcomes Hierarchy
Population Outcomes:
The Project will contribute to: / Population Outcomes:
  • Tasmanians with disability are in control and have choices based on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
  • Tasmanians with disability have optimal social and economic independence, and lead an ordinary life.

Theory of Change:
It is assumed that: / Part 1: Build an allied health workforce in regional/rural/remote areas of Tasmania with expertise in disability and multidisciplinary approaches to positive behaviour supports.
  • Peak groups, providers, the Department of Education (DoE) and the Chief Allied Health Advisor in the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) have consistently raised concerns about the availability and future supply of qualified allied health workers working in the disability sector.
  • Attracting and retaining allied health workers to regional/rural/remote areas is a particular challenge noting that Tasmania has a distributed population with 60% of people living outside of the capital city (NDS Tasmanian Disability Workforce Strategy and Action Plan, February 2016).
  • An adequate supply of a skilled and competent workforce, specifically allied health professionals, allied health assistants and support workers is critical to the success of the NDIS.
  • There are two levels to the allied health workforce; those who are professionally qualified, usually through an accredited university degree (eg. Physiotherapists, Speech Pathologists, Occupational Therapists) and allied health assistants, who may have VET qualifications (Certificate II, III or IV) in Allied Health Assisting and work under supervision of allied health professionals.
  • This component of the project will develop and implement strategies to address this issue and increase the capability of the workforce in the following ways:
  • determine existing allied health workforce (professionals and assistants)
  • work with the sector to forecast supply mix of professional allied health workers and allied health assistants required at full scheme
  • work with providers to recruit a workforce of allied health assistants to regional/rural/remote areas
  • work in collaboration with providers and the sector to facilitate traineeships in Certificate IV, Allied Health Assistance (HLT43015)
  • implement structured professional supervision for allied health assistants by allied health professionals, through technologies such as telehealth and video-conferencing to enhance regional, rural and remote coverage
  • promote multidisciplinary approaches for the allied health professional and assistant workforce, with particular emphasis on working with people with disability, their families and carers to promote positive behaviour supports and reduce or eliminate restrictive interventions.
  • This component supports the implementation of the NDIS National Quality and Safeguarding Framework (under development August 2016) which outlines measures to promote positive behaviour practitioners that are suitably skilled and qualified and support the elimination or reduction of restrictive practices.
Sector Development Fund Outcomes:
  • Outcome 1: Building community capacity and engagement
  • Outcome 2: Increasing individual capacity and increasing new forms of support
  • Outcome 3: Building disability sector capacity and service provider readiness
  • Outcome 4: Expansion and diversification of the workforce
  • Outcome 5: Building the evidence base

Project Outcomes:
Change
Is anyone better off? / This project contributes to Outcome 4 above.
  • Contribute to the retention rates for existing Allied Health Professionals and workers in regional/remote/rural areas
  • Contribute to new Allied Health (AH) Professionals and other disability support professionals/support workersbeing attracted into regional/remote/rural areas

Intermediate
How well did we do it? /
  • Providers are satisfied that the implementation strategies are appropriate, responsive to their needs and effective at increasing capacity to deliver services in regional/remote/rural areas.
  • Partner agencies are satisfied that the implementation strategies are appropriate, responsive to their needs and effective at increasing capacity to deliver services in regional/remote/rural areas.

Outputs
How much did we do? /
  • Strategies are accessible and available to providers/ key stakeholders

Outcome Indicators
How much did we do?
Strategies are accessible and available to providers/ key stakeholders in regional/remote areas / How well did we do it?
  • Providers are satisfied that the implementation strategies are appropriate, responsive to their needs and effective at increasing capacity to deliver services in regional/remote/rural areas.
  • Partner agencies are satisfied that the implementation strategies are appropriate, responsive to their needs and effective at increasing capacity to deliver services in regional/remote/rural areas.

# strategies implemented by type/region?
# providers that participated in strategies by type/region / % providersthat report an increase in interest in employment in the disability sector
% providers and partner agencies satisfied
Is anyone better off?
  • Retention rates for existing Allied Health Professionals and workers in regional/remote/rural areas will be maintained or improved
  • New Allied Health (AH) Professionals and other disability support professionals/support workers will be attracted into regional/remote/rural areas

# existing AH professionals
# AH professionals and other disability support professionals/workers expecting to enter the market or entered the market / % providers who have entered the market or who expect to enter the market

CFOS – DCS – SDF – PROJECT 2 Sector workforce development v1.0November 2016)Page1

Performance measures – To be determined

CFOS –sector development v1.0 (11 October 2016)Page1

[1]Results Based Accountability™ (RBA) is a planning, monitoring, evaluation and continuous improvement tool developed by Mark Friedman. RBA focuses on outcomes for communities and individuals and is a process that gets you from talk to action quickly. RBA can be used at a Population level to improve the lives of children, families and the community as a whole, or at a Performance level to evaluate and measure the impact of a program or service.