ConnectAbility struggles under weight of outbreak

Newcastle and Central Coast independent disability and health care provider, ConnectAbility says they are stretched to the limit in all areas of its workings as it continues to navigate through the Covid-19 crisis.

Newcastle and Central Coast independent disability and health care provider, ConnectAbility says they are stretched to the limit in all areas of its workings as it continues to navigate through the Covid-19 crisis.

The organisation has 470 permanent and casual employees on its books, who are deployed to various programs within the company but staff shortages have made the going tough of late.

CEO David Carey says the last two years have been the trickiest on record.

“Our staff is being demoralised because there’s no light at the end of the tunnel,” Carey said.

“They’re losing heart. They have their own problems at home but turn up and do the best job they can. A lot of our healthy staff are all doing overtime, but they’re tired. A normal shift is mentally exhausting as it is. Lots of times we’ve had a skeleton staff. It’s a war against an invisible enemy.”

In its 30th year, ConnectAbility has been serving the Newcastle and Hunter area since 1992 after it was founded by a group of parents to help support people with significant disabilities to access the community.

connectABILITY is struggling during the latest Covid outbreak.

It started with four staff and 10 customers, to the point where it now has acquired 23 group homes that need to be staffed 24-7, while providing programs such as supported independent living, aged care support, family counselling, as well as integrated day group sessions at their Warabrook base.

Continuing some of these services have hit a hurdle as it’s their staff that are needing a helping hand.

“People are running out of leave because as you know if you get covid away from the workplace you can’t get workers comp,” Carey said.

“Financially it’s crushing people with repeated quarantining. Some are struggling to pay rent and put food on the table. These people aren’t doctors so they’re the lowest paid in the workforce,” Carey said.

Lately keeping the doors open has been a juggling act due to close contacts creating holes in rosters.

“The rules are so rigid as you can only have visitors that are double vaxed which is quite interesting to a disability organisation. Remembering these workers have to self-isolate for 14 days, not seven. Those people could legitimately go into the community to do what they do and still bring covid back.

“If a worker tests positive after seven days they can go to the shops, pubs, anywhere but they still have to wait another seven days to get back to work.”

Another problem Carey cited was the government’s vaccination mandate.

“It was the perfect storm. For example, we had employees who decided not to get vaccinated and they went on extended leave only to come back and hand in their notice. One had been working for us for 23 years, that person was one of our best. You just can’t replace people like that overnight.”

Carey is on the committee of the National Disability Services and knows it’s not just his own organisation struggling to meet demands.

The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has standard practices in place which will see them wield a heavy hand if requirements aren’t met.

“They (NDIS) made it quite clear that if any group home is unattended, they will de-register you. It would mean you’d be closed down and all their clients will be given away to another organisation,” Carey said.

“I know of another provider which was so short-staffed because of Omicron that they had the team leader working non-stop around the clock for a week in a group home, it was that dire. It’s not an ideal situation at all. We just have to cope. We have to,” Carey said.