NDIS Autism Assessment Sydney

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Having a disability, like Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), can hamper an individual's function and require assistance to manoeuvre in their daily life. ASD is a challenging developmental health condition that affects an individual by making it difficult to perform daily activities and achieve their goals and manifesting problems in social relations, repetitive behaviours, and speech and verbal communication. Additionally, individuals with ASD tend to isolate themselves and have reduced functional capacity, vital in performing daily tasks. Thus, the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provides the NDIS Autism Assessment to the citizens and residents of Sydney manifesting symptoms and diagnosed with ASD to assist in changing and improving the living conditions of the participants, their families, and carers.

Positive Moods offers the NDIS Autism Assessment to the citizens and residents of Sydney, both for old and new NDIS participants. The NDIS Autism Assessment can assist the participants in collecting vital information regarding their disability, which will serve as evidence to prove their eligibility for NDIS funding. Moreover, the NDIS Autism Assessment is useful in the planning process, helping the healthcare professionals to deliver a support plan that is in line with the participant's needs, goals, and unique conditions. The NDIS Autism Assessment is beneficial for the citizens and residents of Sydney, which can help them conveniently apply and access the NDIS funding.

NDIS Autism Assessment

The NDIS aims to assist and change the lives of Australians with disabilities, such as ASD. However, NDIS participants should prove their disability to verify their eligibility for support. Thus, the NDIS Autism Assessment is encouraged to access by old and new NDIS participants to assist them in collecting vital information regarding the functional capacity of the participants. Healthcare professionals will also use collected data during the planning process to determine the support and therapy in line with the participant's needs, goals, and unique conditions. While the NDIS Autism Assessment is beneficial, it will not replace the participant's current medical therapist. Instead, it will only assist in giving reliable and latest assessment reports regarding the participant's functional capacity.

Additionally, the NDIS Autism Assessment can help determine the participants' existing skills, tasks they can do independently, and areas of their life requiring support and development. The NDIS Autism Assessment can benefit the citizens and residents of Sydney, making it easier to apply and avail a support plan that is granted fair and in line with the participant’s needs, goals, and unique conditions. Existing NDIS participants with existing funding can access the NDIS Autism Assessment at Positive Moods to help them update the support plan and significant life changes, such as attending school, getting a job or transitioning out of the NDIS.

Administering NDIS Autism Assessment

Since many would like to access NDIS funding, the NDIS Autism Assessment ensures that the support plan is fair and convenient. It assists the participant in collecting vital information of their functional capacity and verifying their eligibility for support. On the other hand, attending several assessments can be pricy. The NDIS participants are encouraged to access the NDIS Autism Assessment at Positive Moods. It is accessible for free regardless of the participant's financial condition and lasts for around 1 to 4 hours every session.

Positive Moods healthcare professionals also consider that individuals with ASD will be uneasy to meet new people, and observation can cause anxiety. The participants, their families, and carers can request several assessment sessions to offer convenience and ensure efficient evaluation. Apart from this, the NDIS Autism Assessment can be administered depending on the participants, their families, and the carer's availability and preferred location.

The good thing with accessing the NDIS Autism Assessment at Positive Moods is that participants are assigned with well-trained healthcare professionals to guide them during the assessment, such as speech pathologists, occupational therapists, psychologists, physiotherapists, rehabilitation counsellors, and social workers. Availing services at Positive Moods is beneficial to the citizens and residents of Sydney, allowing them to work closely with licenced healthcare professionals and receive the utmost services and care.

During the assessment, healthcare professionals will refer to the National Guidelines for Autism Assessment and Diagnosis and provide participants with assessment reports and feedback, serving as evidence of their disability. Once the participant is diagnosed with ASD, contact NDIS to send the assessment report to apply or update the support plan. If the participant availed a support plan, they can reach out to Positive Moods and start accessing therapy services in line with their funding. Previous NDIS participants may access the Autism Assessment if there are significant changes in their lives to update the support plan, like attending school, getting a job, or transitioning out of the NDIS.

Types of NDIS Autism Assessment

To ensure that NDIS Autism Assessment is provided fair and in line with the participant's needs, goals, and unique conditions, different types of assessment are used based on the participant's age and functional capacity, including:

Diagnostic Assessment

Healthcare professionals administer the Diagnostic Assessment to observe participants ages two years old and up if they are manifesting autism or not. This assessment will consist of interviews with the participant's family, performing clinical observation, evaluating the participant's functional capacity, and providing a feedback session and a summary report. Also, participants will get a letter after the assessment consisting of a diagnostic conclusion, ASD severity level, general recommendations, and the participant's and their families' developmental and medical history.

Screening and Early Development Assessment

Healthcare professionals administer the Screening and Early Development Assessment to younger children ages 12 months to under 7 years if their parents are worried about their developmental progress. This assessment will involve the evaluation of the child's overall functional capacity and if they manifest early signs of autism. During this assessment, healthcare professionals will give a parent checklist, clinical observation, developmental assessment, feedback session, a summary report, and a diagnostic letter.

Review Assessment

Healthcare professionals administer the Review Assessment to ages 4-years old and above who are old NDIS participants and diagnosed with ASD. This assessment will involve collecting updated information of the participant’s functional capacity and significant changes in their life, like acquiring a new job or transitioning out of the NDIS. Also, the Cognitive Assessment will be used by healthcare professionals to participants preparing to enter school.

NDIS Funding Eligibility

To apply for NDIS funding, here are the eligibility criteria that applicants need to meet to access support, including:

  • Living with permanent and significant disability

  • Ages 7 to 65 years old (ECEI for children below 7 years old)

  • Residents and Citizens of Australia

  • Holds a Permanent Visa or Protected Special Category Visa

If the above criteria are met by the participants, applying for NDIS ASD support plan will be based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5) to determine the beneficial support that is in line with the participant's needs, goals, and unique conditions, including:

  • Level 1- Requires Support

  • Level 2- Requires Substantial Support

  • Level 3- Requires Very Substantial Support

If an individual has a Level 2 or Level 3 Autism diagnosis, the NDIS ASD support plan is automatically granted and does not require further assessments. However, if individuals have a Level 1 Autism diagnosis, it is necessary to go through assessments, collect evidence of their disability, and verify their eligibility for support.

For more details on NDIS Autism Assessment, citizens and residents of Sydney who are suffering or showing symptoms of ASD may call Positive Moods on 1300 001 470, email at ndis@positivemoods.com.au, or fill out the contact form on https://www.positivemoods.com.au/contactus.