DHS Disability Services Strategic Plan

DHS Disability Services is a high quality, rights-based, person-centred service with an approach of ‘everything about you, with you’. We will listen to you and support you to live the life you choose in your home and in the community.

Service: Proudly serve the community and the Government of South Australia

Professionalism: Strive for excellence

Trust: We have confidence in the ability of others

Respect: We value every individual

Collaboration and Engagement: We create solutions together

Honesty and Integrity: We act truthfully, consistently, and fairly

Sustainability: We work to get the best results for current and future generations of South Australia.

DHS Disability Services will focus on the following strategic goals:

  • Delivering high quality and safe supported independent living services
  • Operating an effective and efficient service model
  • Empowering informed clients and families
  • Building an inclusive, high-performing and engaged workforce.

High Quality Safe Services

Commitment

Services are provided under a rights-based practice quality standard with a zero tolerance for abuse and neglect.

Strategy/activity

  • Align service delivery to the NDIS quality and safeguarding requirements
  • Embed the quality safeguarding framework for service delivery
  • Embed the zero tolerance for abuse and neglect policy
  • Embed the consistency of practice
  • Redesign service model to align to NDIS future service delivery
  • Respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Deliverable

  • Quality and safeguarding practices are embedded
  • External audit against quality and safeguarding requirements
  • Improvements in client wellbeing
  • Vaccination for COVID-19 provided.

Effective and efficient service delivery

Commitment

Enable a commercial and viable service delivery model through reform and new and  improved internal capabilities.

Strategy/activity

  • Implement digital systems and processes
  • Redesign and implement rostering processes and systems
  • Maximise NDIS revenue
  • Consolidate metropolitan offices to north, south, central
  • With Wellbeing SA, transition people with disability from hospital to community.

Deliverable

  • Reduce agency and overtime
  • Achieve a sustainable budget from 1 July 2023
  • Improve productivity through reduced manual paper processes
  • Maximise in-kind budget benefits.

Empowered clients and families

Commitment

Clients and families are engaged with their services and build their capacity to improve participation in their decisions and community.

Strategy/activity

  • Deliver services in line with the Customer Charter
  • Support clients and families to exercise choice and control
  • Continuously improve service delivery from feedback systems
  • Adopt and promote a culturally appropriate service for people from an Indigenous background to ensure clients’ voices inform and influence service design including:
    • where appropriate, support clients to meet and have opportunities to know their neighbours.
    • support clients to live in appropriate accommodation with others they are compatible with
    • where appropriate, support clients to have a My Life decision plan in place through supported decision-making processes.
    • build a secure team around each client to ensure they feel safe and supported in our service.

Deliverable

  • Continually improve from active feedback from clients and families
  • Clients are empowered to have NDIS plans reflective of their needs
  • Clients supported to make choices they want to live their best lives
  • Clients have a secure and stable team to support their needs.

High-performing workforce

Commitment

Staff are equipped and empowered to deliver high-quality, effective and efficient services.

Strategy/activity

  • Deliver training and development for staff in line with their role
  • Continue to enhance and deliver on Work, Health and Safety strategies that are best practice
  • Staff reference group continue to inform on continuous improvement
  • Recognise staff for excellence and collaboration
  • Enhance our workforce planning and recruitment.

Deliverable

  • Feedback from staff survey (that is, Teamgage)
  • Reduction in Workforce Health and Safety events
  • Improved awareness and capability in key areas of service delivery (for example, quality, safety, information technology)
  • Staff recognised
  • High quality staff recruited and retained
  • Recruit and train 175 disability trainees over two years.

Page last updated 26 May 2023