Your NDIS Plan contains a list of supports that fall into certain categories allowing you to use Plan funds for specific purposes. One such purpose might be to obtain assistive technology, and if you’re visually impaired or blind, this piece of kit might be for you!
Before we take a look at the kit in question, let’s look at some admin details …
If you’ve qualified for Assistive Technology funding (AT) in your Plan it falls under the “Improved Daily Living Skills” budget (under Capacity Building). You can read more about the budget categories on our blog here.
If you haven’t qualified or received a Plan yet, let’s take a brief look at qualifying for AT as part of your NDIS Plan…
In all instances NDIA will require sufficient evidence to support your claim for AT, and the level of evidence you’ll be required to provide is likely to depend on the level of AT required. For example, a lower cost item will require less documentation and supporting evidence than something of higher value.
In short, it’s important that in preparation for you Plan meeting that you put together as much supporting evidence as you can to ensure you receive the budget you need assigned to the Capacity Building budget on your Plan.
To help out, and short of us providing this info in its entirety, below is a link to the NDIS site that will help you with:
- Completing an AT assessment
- Identifying AT complexity levels
- Pricing and payments for AT providers
- The Assistive Technology and Consumables Codes Guide
Check it all out here: https://www.ndis.gov.au/providers/essentials-providers-working-ndia/providing-assistive-technology
Moving on to the fun part … Introducing the OrCam MyEye2!
Aside from its range of abilities, this baby comes with a one-on-one training and free online tutorials to help you get comfortable using it. Of course there are guarantees and a warranty for peace of mind, but what can it do for the vision impaired?
- Read Text Including newspapers, books, menus, signs, product labels and even screens.
- Intuitive operation Responds to simple hand gestures and has more than 20 built in voice-activated commands
- Recognises Faces Real-time identification of faces, seamlessly announced to the user
- Works everywhere It doesn’t require an internet connection, but can also connect with Bluetooth devices allowing for headphone or speaker use
- Identify Products Aside from recognising barcodes, the OrCam MyEye 2 can identify products, offering an independent shopping experience to the wearer
Take a look at the OrCam MyEye 2 feature video to get a clearer understanding of how this nice piece of equipment works:
[yotuwp type=”videos” id=”F2dVDHa421k” column=”1″ per_page=”1″]
OrCam ship these to Australia, but it’ll be worth getting the pricing sorted out via their website (https://www.orcam.com/en/) so you understand what level of budget your Plan might require to get it in your hands.
And as usual, make sure you discuss your needs with your Support Coordinator, Local Area Coordinator or ECEI to make sure your Plan helps you achieve your goals. Beyond that, as your faithful Plan Manager, we’re also here to help. If you’d like more information on including Plan Management in your NDIS Plan, get in touch with us today (https://ndsp.com.au/contact-us/) – we’re all for Participants.
If you or someone you care for requires NDIS assistance or specifically looking for a reputable and professional Plan Manager, get in touch with us today via our online form or give us a call on 1800 63 63 77.
