Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes…

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” — Barack Obama

Change. Some say it’s as good as a holiday; others say it’s akin to psychological torture. Whatever your view, one thing is certain – if you work in the Community Sector, change isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. And in my view, this change brings with it challenge, but also optimism.

In the NDIS space, we’re gearing up for a Disability Royal Commission and a review of the NDIS, while managing most states’ and territories’ transition to the national NDIS Quality and Safeguards Framework. The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is now operating in all states and territories except for WA, and providers across the country are dealing with a mountain of operational changes resulting from a number of internal and external reviews of the NDIA and the Scheme’s operation.

On the Aged Care front, transition to the new Aged Care Quality Standards is consuming government and providers alike, as is responding to the fall out from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.

Whilst there have been some insights into innovative and new ways of delivering aged care, sadly the main focus of the most recent hearings continues to reveal confronting stories of neglect. The main areas highlighted are:

• Ratios of staff-to-clients in residential facilities;
• The ‘Earle Haven’ case study in Queensland; and
• The potential breakdown in processes with the consolidation of aged care complaints and now Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.

Amergin, too, is continuously evolving. This week, we have welcomed Grandall and Kelli (who we’ll introduce in more detail in future Agenda editions) to our Consulting team, led by Senior Consultant Sarah. This team will work closely together to continue to deliver quality NDIS and Aged Care Support to our clients. Senior Consultant Aynsley has become our Aged Care Manager, reflecting her wealth of expertise and experience in this area, and the breadth of work she is undertaking in this space on behalf of Amergin.

Existing Consultants Hannah and Lauren have moved into our new Everyday Practice team, which is responsible for implementing our successful NDIS Commission grant under the Support for NDIS Providers program. Hannah and Lauren will be developing a range of resources for the Everyday Practice website in collaboration with our partner Queenslanders with Disability Network(QDN) and Steering Committee members Community Resource Unit (CRU) and Richmond Fellowship Queensland (RFQ). They will also manage the site’s public forums and help desk. In addition, we recently welcomed Developer Jeff, who will support the back-end production and maintenance of the Everyday Practice website, forums and help desk.

Our Marketing Support Officer (and Amergin all-rounder) Ben has received a well-deserved promotion and is responsible for the delivery of a number of important initiatives across Amergin, amerginhub and Everyday Practice. And our Operations Manager Belinda and Accounts Manager Sue continue to provide vital behind-the-scenes support.

In light of these internal changes, we recently revisited our Mission, Vision and Values to ensure they align with the nature of support needed by our clients and the Community Sector more broadly, as well as our own strategic direction. I’m pleased to share them with you:

Vision

Amergin’s Vision is to drive change in the community sector, business and government to transform lives.

Mission

Amergin’s Mission is to be a Centre of Excellence in community services, with industry experts providing innovative end-to-end service solutions.

Values

Amergin prides itself on and upholds the following values:

Credibility This is personal. We’ve been on the ground and we walk the talk of the community sector. We are passionate about inspiring best practice in community services. Our knowledge is kept up-to-date through our own direct experience, connection with industry and ongoing professional development. We help genuine community sector providers who want to deliver best practice services and make a positive impact in their industry.

Transparency We have integrity. We are upfront and honest. We are clear about what our clients can expect from us, the work we undertake and the advice we give. We provide genuine advice and choice to our clients and set realistic expectations about what we can and cannot do. We are collaborative, working in partnership with our clients so they are empowered to be the best community sector providers they can be.

Quality Amergin is a Centre of Excellence. We work collaboratively with clients, with other staff and with the industries we work in to ensure our knowledge, advice and service delivery is of the highest quality. We take a continuous improvement approach and go above and beyond to ensure all clients receive the best support possible. We are committed to supporting our clients to deliver high quality, best practice services, so in turn, they can transform the lives of the people they support. We are dedicated, committed and people-focused.