The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) aims to support and offer services for people with a psychosocial disability, additional to clinical treatment, if they meet relevant criteria.
This page is designed to help clinicians support patients in their NDIS application process.
See also our Psychosocial Supports page for other support options.
Transition Support Project
Western Victoria PHN has been working with Flinders University, other primary health networks and mental health service providers as part of the Federal Government’s Transition Support Project.
The focus of the project has involved helping streamline processes and remove barriers for people with a psychosocial disability when they are tested for eligibility for the NDIS. This includes supporting general practitioners’ understanding of their role in providing evidence during the application process for persons or participants seeking NDIS-funded psychosocial supports.
As a result, a suite of resources has been developed for GPs. Those resources are available below.
What the NDIS can offer
The NDIS can provide funding for people to address impairments or challenges arising from their mental health condition. For example, if someone with a psychosocial disability is struggling with self-care or social interaction, the NDIS may be able to fund support and services to help with these activities and tasks.
Application process
To access the NDIS a person must:
- Have a permanent disability that significantly affects their ability to take part in everyday activities
- Be aged less than 65 years when they apply to the NDIS
- Be an Australian citizen or hold a permanent visa or a Protected Special Category visa.
In addition, a person will need to show they meet the NDIS’s disability requirements. As such, clinicians (possibly in collaboration with a person’s carer) need to provide evidence to demonstrate the person:
- Has a disability that is attributable to a mental health condition
- The condition (and resulting disability) is likely to persist for the rest of the person’s life
- The patient is substantially impaired in a least one of six key domains as a result of their disability, namely social interaction, self-management, self-care, communication, learning, mobility.
As part of a patient’s NDIS application, they need to complete the Evidence of psychosocial disability form. The Transition Support Project developed this form in conjunction with the National Disability Insurance Agency to collect information relevant to someone with psychosocial disabilities.
Further resources
- Psychosocial Disability – GP Documentation Guide (PDF 179KB)
- Psychosocial Disability – GP Guide How to Provide Evidence (PDF 175KB)
For more information on the application process, please refer to the Streamlining processes for people with a psychosocial disability to test eligibility for the NDIS webinar
Psychosocial support providers in western Victoria
Once an application has been reviewed and approved by the NDIS, persons or participants will be allocated a local area coordinator and a NDIS plan will be developed. From there, patients can determine the type and level of support they require, including NDIS-approved service providers in our region listed below.
Ballarat Goldfields
Geelong Otway
Great South Coast
Wimmera Grampians
In the video below, Tania Shelby-James and Amy Duncan from Flinders University’s Transition Support Project discuss how GPs can better understand their role in providing evidence to help patients with a psychosocial disability when testing for eligibility to receive National Disability Insurance Scheme support