Speak Out June 2020

Association news

Newly presented Association guides The online guides for Overseas Qualification Competency Assessment (OSQCA), Re-entry Program and Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA), along with a Re-entry Program Resource Guide, recently underwent an update.

ILC Project update 'What’s it all about?' A lot has happened in the past two months with the ILC Project. Governance was established and our first project steering committee meeting occurred on the 27 April 2020. The first progress report to NDIA has been submitted. Correspondence regarding ‘Expressions of Interest’ for the project advisory committee has been released. The advisory committee will be diverse in background, with members drawn from Speech Pathology Australia, representatives of disability organisations, people with communication disability and other communication partners. If you wish to find out more, please email me at rcampbell@ speechpathologyaustalia.org.au Roseda Campbell Project Manager-ILC Grant Please note: The Association is aware that other groups, such as children with cleft palate, are also finding accessing the NDIS difficult. This will be our next advocacy project moving forward, so watch this space! Amy Fitzpatrick Senior Advisor Disability NDIS - DLD and CAS as lifelong conditions Speech Pathology Australia Chief Executive Officer Gail Mulcair, Manager of Policy and Advocacy Mark Smith and senior advisors for Early Childhood and Education and Disability met in April with representatives from senior management at the NDIS regarding the lifelong nature of CAS and DLD. The aim of the meeting was to bring to the NDIA’s attention the ongoing need for funding past the age of 7, the inconsistencies in children being accepted based on significant delays across one developmental domain, and to ask for recognition of DLD and CAS as disabilities, amongst other topics. The outcome from the meeting was that the NDIS would like to understand more about the lifelong nature of these conditions, and there was an offer to present some cases for an audit of the process to make sure access requests were being address consistently. The Association is putting a call out to interested families to email if they would like to be included in the audit—particularly those rejected in the first instance or had their plans cut unexpectedly. Please note-this audit will not change current plans or outcomes, although we can hope!. It will give the Association and members a better understanding of how to demonstrate functional impact in reports, as well as giving the NDIS an understanding of the number of families being rejected or having their plans withdrawn. If a family would like to be involved, they can contact Amy Fitzpatrick, Senior Advisor for Disability at afitzpatrick@ speechpathologyaustralia.org.au or via National Office 1300 368 835.

The guides are now presented in a more modern format and can be accessed by following the ‘Join Us’ section of the Association's website. Should you have any queries with respect to these new-look guides, please contact the Professional Standards team via pssupport@ speechpathologyaustralia.org.au

Assessment of Competency to Practise as a Speech Pathologist in Australia

MutualRecognitionAgreement (MRA) Guide forApplicants

MutualRecognitionAgreement (MRA) -Guide forapplicants2020 1

View the guides

Research Grants 2020 Applications for the New Researcher Grant, Queensland Registration Board Legacy Fund Grant and Nadia Verrall Memorial Grant closed on April 16. A total of 26 unique applications was received. Of these, four were submitted to both the New Researcher and Queensland Registration Board Legacy Fund categories. For the first time, submission was online, using iMIS as the portal. This change is designed to streamline the process and reduce pressure on staff at National Office. So far, all is going well. The applications cover a range of areas, including dysphagia, aphasia, disability, voice, speech sound disorders and school-based services. Also for the first time in 2020 a call for reviewers was sent to all members who indicated Academic in their iMIS record. We have been delighted by the response. With more than 90 volunteers on the reviewers list, the task of assigning reviews will be much easier this year. We look forward to sharing details of the successful applications with you in the near future. Details of the Clinician-Researcher Partnership Grant and a new grant, Building the Evidence Base: Supporting Equitable Outcomes in Communication and Swallowing for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples, are available under the member tab on the SPA website. Applications close on September 30. Cori Williams Senior Advisor, Evidence-Based Practice and Research

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June 2020 www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au

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