Positive Behaviour Support in Practice

How to measure outcomes when implementing BSP

It depends upon the goals set by the person, but as a rule of thumb, we are looking at:

1. improvements in quality of life,
2. reduction in challenging behaviours and restrictive practices.

Parenting vs Restrictive Practices - when is an action considered a restrictive practice?

This is a common question that families of young children (under 18) have. 

The NDIS Commission has created some resources on this which can be found on their website The Regulated Restrictive Practices with Children and Young People with Disability Practice Guide 

These resources focus on the use of regulated restrictive practices with NDIS participants aged under 18 years.

It aims to:

• promote the rights of children and young people with a disability,
• identify special considerations and relevant safeguards,
• highlight the obligations of NDIS providers and
• provide advice consistent with contemporary evidence and a positive behaviour support framework.

The guide was developed for registered NDIS providers and NDIS behaviour support practitioners. It may also be of interest to participants, their families, and others supporting children and young people with disability.”

Case Studies - how it actually works

Adam

Adam is a passionate Churchgoer who attends several services across the Sydney region.  Adam was diagnosed with autism when he was 19 years old, which has posed some challenges when attending church services. 

This led to a referral for behaviour support at Everyday Independence. Everyday Independence Occupational Therapist/ Behaviour Support Practitioner Simone has been supporting Adam for the past 14 months. Adam’s support team also consists of his sister/ guardian, Georgia, a Coordinator of Support and Support Workers from the broader church community.  

The team worked alongside Adam to develop and implement some strategies to help him achieve his goals. This included meeting with stakeholders within the church community, who could be there to support Adam. They also developed a home cleaning and exercise routine during lockdown, and to continue supporting this routine, Adam is in the process of getting a Habit Coach. 

Adam’s goal is to be able to take part in church events without additional support, while advocating for himself and others with disabilities within the church space.  

“It filled me with a sense of purpose and meaning in terms of my own work/life and what I can do and achieve in my current role. I also experienced so much joy to see Adam achieving his potential and how one success flowed over into so many other areas of his life. He showed increased motivation and confidence in other areas from the positive experience and feedback he received from his video.” Simone

Perhaps the most impactful activity in Adam’s journey to achieving his goals was a video that he created and shared with the church community. The video outlined how others could support Adam in building his capacity and social skills in church. Adam dictated his own script and determined many of the details, such as where to film and what to wear. This autonomy and ownership gave him a great sense of achievement, as he was able to express his needs and feelings in a positive and meaningful way.  

‘I am excited about the ripple effect that the change and impact of the change can have. It isn’t only Adam’s quality of life and sense of purpose that changes, but also that of his family and his community as well as other people living with a disability in the church and the broader community.’ Simone

Do you need positive behaviour support? Ask the MyCareSpace Team to connect you

Chris

Chris is happy and relaxed as he enjoys a picnic in the park listening to his favourite music. He’s enjoying the day with Everyday Independence therapists Samantha and Abigail, and his support worker Yuko as he works towards being more connected with his community.

Samantha (Positive Behaviour Support Practitioner) and Abigail (Occupational Therapist) have been key members of Chris’ therapy team over the past three years.  When they first met Chris, he would barely come out of his room and engage with others. Chris is extremely private about eating and would not eat outside of his room, which limited most community outings. Changes to his routine, places, or people can also be highly stressful for Chris.

Taking a person-centered approach, Samantha and Abigail have explored what’s important to Chris and his family. During therapy sessions, they’ve focussed on getting to know Chris, his strengths, routines, what he enjoys doing, and what he finds challenging.

Building trust, a strong rapport and working at a pace that suited Chris has given him the confidence to make changes to his daily routine and explore new situations as he works towards his goals.

Abigail and Samantha also worked with Chris’ mum and his support workers to build their skills to help him prepare for any changes to his daily routine and supporting him to manage the changes.

After 12 months, Chris left his house to go for a walk with Abigail where they chatted about music and his favourite artists. Chris enjoyed the walk so much that he now happily goes for a walk with his support worker on his own.

Chris has become a lot more confident spending time with others. His communication and engagement with his therapy team have significantly increased and he will now come out of his bedroom and sit with them in the dining room during sessions.

Occupational Therapist Abigail said, “It’s been the best feeling to be a part of Chris’ journey. Over the past 2 years we’ve had many ‘wow moments’ during therapy sessions where Chris has shown courage to try something new and find his way through new challenges.

When we came home from the picnic, Chris told his mum that he had eaten food and taken his earphones off. She nearly burst into tears of joy as she hasn’t eaten with him in years, nor seen him take his headphones off other than to shower.

Samantha and I look forward to seeing Chris achieve more wins in the future. We’ll continue to support Chris with patience and encouragement as he works towards his goals of being more involved in the community and sharing a meal with his mum.”

Do you need positive behaviour support? Ask the MyCareSpace Team to connect you

Resources on Positive Behaviour Support

• Webinar: Positive Behaviour Support and the NDIS
• Here is a link to the Powerpoint Slides that were used during the webinar
• Positive Behaviour Supports - what you need to know
• Positive Behaviour Supports in Practice 
• What is Positive Behaviour Support and how to get it in an NDIS Plan
• Questions asked at our Webinar