Dear Mr Newman,
After
reading in the media some of the feedback you are receiving about the
job you and your government is doing, I would like to give you my
feedback.
Firstly,
I would like to thank-you for making sure part of our car registration
bill will not increase this year, and for anything you do to help with
our ever increasing electricity bills, every little bit helps.
I'm
a mum of two young (under 5 years) children, and like all mums, I want
the best for my kids. I never imagined myself to be someone who would
need to rely on government services. I have always thought of myself as
quite independent and self-sufficient. Life circumstances have dictated
otherwise. You see, one of my children has special needs. This has
changed my plans to return to full-time work which has had an enormous
flow-on effect. Navigating the world of government services is still new
to me and more time-consuming and confusing than I could have ever
imagined. Yes, please streamline whatever you can!
We
have accessed some State Government-funded services, so I am going to
share with you some of my most recent experiences over the last 4 years.
First,
was Child Health. Great. I love them. I certainly hope this valuable
service is spared any funding cuts. At one of my son's regular
developmental check-ups I was given a referral to Children's
Developmental Services. We had access to therapy and more assessments
over approximately an 18 month period, at the end of which we received a
diagnosis, an information pack and a letter which gave us access to a
Federal Government-funded package.
The
second State Government-funded initiative we accessed is the Early
Childhood Development Program run under Education Queensland. While this
is a great program, with hard-working, well-meaning staff, after 2
terms at 5 hours per week, we determined that it did not work for our
son. This has led us away from Education Queensland and over to a
non-profit
organisation
(which thank goodness is there!) with less subsidies and more
out-of-pocket expenses for our family. However, like I said, I want the
best for my kids and the Government service in it's current state does
not provide that. I would like to hope that if a non-profit organisation
can work out how to cater for my son, so should a Government
department.
My
third encounter with a State Government service was when I made a call
to DSQ (Disability Services Queensland). They were lovely and gave me a
"number" which I needed for a form at the time. I also made an
appointment for an assessment, with approximately 1 month waiting time.
My husband took time off to attend the appointment with me during work
hours, and one hour later we were left with no doubt that we were
"elligible" for services, eg. Respite. Fantastic, we received our piece
of paper in the mail later that week confirming our "elligible" status.
What has that meant for us? Nothing. That's right, we are "elligible"
for respite but apparently there is no funding. So the State Government
is appearing to provide a service, there are people answering the phones
and assessors attending appointments and filling in paperwork and
information is being gathered and filed somewhere, but when it comes to
any actual service,
there
isn't any, not for us anyway. I know there are families who do receive
valuable services from DSQ, but I cannot comment on their behalf, only
my personal experience, so I’m sure there are also others like me.
Now
our son with special needs is approaching school age, we are once again
looking at dealing with Education Queensland. I cannot begin to explain
the anxiety this is causing me. The current education system does not
cater for children like my son. He is not intellectually disabled so
does not "qualify" for Special School. He is not physically impaired in
that he requires a wheelchair or assistance to walk. He is not vision or
hearing impaired. So what IS wrong with him you are probably wondering?
Nothing. Nothing is "wrong" with him and I think that is where
the
problem begins. His special needs cannot be addressed with ramps, or
guide rails. Although, there are certain physical aids that would assist
him, what he needs most is a properly trained teacher who understands
his condition. A neurological condition which means he thinks
differently, and more importantly, LEARNS differently to most children.
My son has autism.
At
the moment, it is OPTIONAL for teachers to learn about this
increasingly common condition and yet there is almost no chance of a
teacher not meeting a child with autism in their career. I would
sincerely like to see this changed. I am asking you, can your government administration please ensure that autism awareness AND understanding be compulsory in all teachers' training/qualification?
Finally,
your decision to not contribute funding to the NDIS trial infuriated
and saddened me. However, that is yet another battle for those of us
advocating for those who can't advocate for themselves. I agree, that
the NDIS should be federally funded. What I don't understand is
why
there cannot be some cooperative funding in the interim to help start a
system that should be better, and more efficient in the long run?
Particularly when you consider who the Scheme is being set up for.
I look forward to hearing your response to my question above.
Best regards,
Concerned Mum
