Dear friend of Connecting Home,
I’d firstly like to thank you all for your patience, calmness and support at this unsettling time that’s happening across the country. It has been a difficult time for everyone personally and professionally and we recognise that people have been amazing at continuing on through all this.
This morning I had a meeting with the board to discuss the continuity of Service for Connecting Home as our Management Team and I have been working on this to ensure our services can continue with whatever is presented to us.
You would also be hearing the regular announcements made by the Prime Minister and Premier of Victoria as well as the Chief Medical Advisors.
Following these announcements. meeting with the board and discussions with our Management team, the following decision has been made concerning services at Connecting Home;
Service Delivery and finance staff
Staff that would normally work from the office (Support Coordinators, Case Managers, Finance) will be working from home commencing Thursday 26th March 2020.
Those choosing to stay at the office will do so and we will be operating in the office with a skeleton staff crew.
Any staff coming to the office and anyone else (including other providers, Stolen Generations Survivors and contractors, will have their temperature screened prior to entry to the office being given. This is due to fever is one of the common first symptom of Covid–19. Please knock or buzz and wait at the front to have your temperature screened.
NDIS and direct support and care
This service will continue as normal
Direct staff bringing clients into the office will also need to have clients temperature screened and work as best as possible to maintain social distancing considering the role.
We will be working with NDIS participants towards the best support for each individual going forward with the current community limitations in place.
CONTACT WITH CLIENTS
With the transition to working remotely and the inability to visit clients, it is our expectation that our Case Managers and Support Coordinators maintain phone contact and support with the survivors and families they work with. This includes ensuring that your support needs are met, linking you to services as needed and the usual Case Management or Support Coordination support that we provide that is extremely important. Some of what we will be implementing to support you are as follows;
1) Regular phone contact with ALL Connecting Home clients.
2) Support to be able to access essential services, medical, mental health and pharmacy as examples. Please speak to your worker about this.
3) Participation in conference meetings to support your care and needs through all technology means available.
COMMUNICATION WITH CLIENTS AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS
With now these significant changes taking place, I will organise a letter for clients and providers to explain our service model going forward. We will also update our website with information and have this communication here as we go. I’m also looking into reactivating our FB page for regular information sharing and will advise when this happens.
I will be communicating and updating you regularly as well your worker through our regular contact.
If you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to contact.
Lets just all hope that this will pass sooner than later with minimal health impacts.
Kind Regards
Lisa Zammit
CEO