Guide to writing support plans
A support plan or care plan provides guidance to clients and support staff on how to work together in their pursuit to achieve the client’s goals.
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Why are support plans important?
Support/care plans are a guide for clients, their carers, and support staff on how they will work together when progressing towards achieving a clients’ goals.
Support plans build on information collected at the time of assessment. They cover recommended strategies and break down goals into doable steps to take in the client’s pursuit of gaining increased independence.
Support plans are a communication tool for all involved that also identifies the roles each person plays. They provide a record of the progress a client makes and the solutions identified when challenges arise.
What does a good support plan look like?
Like any plan, it will need to identify what it is the client wishes to achieve. The client’s strengths and abilities are to be recorded and the areas where the support is required. Goals need to be clearly stepped out, identifying who is responsible for each of the steps or actions stated. The steps may need to be reviewed and changed along the way. Changes should be recorded in the plan to ensure everyone involved is aware and guided by the most up-to-date information.
To review this support plan example, open our ebook here.
Steps to follow when developing a support plan
- Before you meet with a client for the first time, it is essential that you read and understand the assessment report and support plan from the My Aged Care Service Provider portal. See outline here.
- A key focus of a first client visit is to reflect and confirm the information provided via the My Aged Care assessment and support plan.
- Take time to understand what the client wants to achieve. Learn more about the things they do or don’t want to change and how they think they can achieve these outcomes.
- Agreed goals are to be stepped out, using the strategies suggested from the assessment or others identified with the client. The eBook below provides an example of how this could be achieved.
- Ensure the client understands that the support will be regularly reviewed. They should understand that support staff will encourage them to do things for themselves. As they become more independent, they should understand that services can be reduced accordingly.
- Provide assurance that if the client has a setback and they require an increase in support, this will be available until they are able to recommence the steps in the plan.
- A realistic timeline should be given to each of the steps. This assists with tracking progress and can be amended if more time is required.
eBook on writing support plans
The KeepAble team hopes that this eBook is a valuable resource in supporting your organisation, staff, and clients to work in partnership, identify opportunities for wellness and reablement and provide the support that makes every opportunity matter to improve the quality of life and independence of older people.
This eBook is the first one in a series of ebooks we plan to produce. We would love your feedback on how well it met your needs and/or any areas for improvement. Let us know what ebook subject/s would be most beneficial to your organisation. Send us your thoughts via the contact us form at the bottom of this page.
To read our ‘How to write Support Plans‘ ebook online, click here.
To review and download our ‘How to write Support Plans‘ PDF, click here.
For more guidance material on CHSP service provider responsibilities relating to support/care planning, refer to the CHSP Programme Manual, the Aged Care Quality Standards, and the Commonwealth Reablement Digital landing page.
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