fbpx

Positive Behaviour Support

The Hearth Way to PBS

Welcome to Hearth Positive Behaviour Support

At Hearth, we understand the complex nature of behaviour.  Hearth Positive Behaviour Support Practitioners support people to live to their full potential and enjoy an everyday life while promoting independence with a focus on freedom from unnecessary restrictions. We believe that every person has the right to communicate their needs, participate in meaningful activities and have choice and control in their life.

Sometimes a person living with a disability responds to their environment or communicates their needs by using behaviours that challenge. These behaviours can lead to frustration, fractured relationships and the use of reactive practices by others in an attempt to reduce the challenging behaviours.  At Hearth, we think differently about behaviour, providing individualised support to people who use behaviours that challenge. We use the positive behaviour support framework to build an understanding of why challenging behaviours occur. We do this based on an assessment:

  • of the person,
  • the environments where they spend their time
  • information from their supports

With our client centric approach, we balance the focus on reducing behaviours of concern with the aim of improving quality of life through increasing positive and joyful experiences.

We understand the importance and prioritise working collaboratively with the participants and their support network. We spend time training and coaching the participant, their key workers and family members to implement recommended changes.  This unique approach helps us to achieve the best positive long term outcomes for people.

Service Request Form

Our Approach

Behaviour Assessment and Intervention

Hearth Behaviour Support Practitioners are specifically trained clinicians who are passionate about supporting people who use behaviours that challenge. We are curious about behaviours and seek to understand the motivation (function) behind the behaviour. With this understanding we develop a plan for you that includes interventions aimed at reducing the frequency of, or elimination of, challenging behaviours as well as increasing good experiences and your overall quality of life.

The tool that we use to do this is called a Positive Behaviour Support plan. Your Positive Behaviour Support plan is developed by your Behaviour Support Practitioner with input from you and the trusted people in your life. It includes strategies to keep you and everyone safe, to increase your quality of life and reduce the need for you to use challenging behaviours to communicate. With your consent, we share the Positive Behaviour Support plan with the trusted people in your life and we support them, to support you! We regularly review and update your plan to ensure we are continuously working towards your goals.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • How do I make a referral?

    Please complete our Service Request form or call 1800 894 013 

  • What is the cost of your service?

    Our rates are in line with the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits and can be downloaded here

  • What are behaviours that challenge or behaviours of concern?

    These are behaviours that are unexpected and may lead to others around the person to feel frustrated, distressed or fearful. This can look like the person damaging things around them, behaving in ways that are viewed by others as socially inappropriate, hurting themselves or others.

    We believe that all behaviours have a function and by working directly with the person, their family and their other supports we can find ways to assist the person to reduce their behaviours of concern and increase their quality of life.

    By using ethical approaches that focus on human rights and community inclusion we aim to reduce or eliminate the need for restrictive practices wherever possible.

  • What are restrictive practices?

    Restrictive practices are actions and environments that stop a person from exercising their rights to move about or behave in specific ways.  Restrictive practices may take the form of seclusion, the use of medication, using a physical restraint or restricting a person’s free access to their environment including items or activities.

    We believe that when the use of a restrictive practice is required, the restrictive practice must be the least restrictive response possible in the circumstances. It must reduce the risk of harm to the person or others and should be used for shortest possible time to ensure safety. 

    We will work closely with the people around to you to support them to reduce the use of restrictive practices in your life.

  • What is Positive Behaviour Support (PBS)?

    Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is a therapy approach for a person living with a disability and behaviours of concern.  The approach involves working closely with the person with a disability, and their supports, to understand what maintains an individual’s challenging behaviours and provides strategies to reduce and/or eliminate those behaviours.

    We believe that it is a human right to be able to express choices and preferences without the need to use behaviours that challenge self and others. 

  • What is a positive behaviour support plan?

    A person is more likely to achieve the best outcomes when a consistent approach has been developed and communicated.  The consistent approach is outlined in a positive behaviour support plan.  It is a plan that trusted people and supports have had input into and becomes a central resource filled with proactive strategies and instructions to keep you and everyone safe.

    On occasions, where there is a restrictive practice in place, the plan will be sent to the relevant states and territories Office of the Senior Practitioner for authorisation and the NDIS commission for monitoring on the use of the restrictive practice.

Service Request Form

We are a registered NDIS service provider and offer specialist behaviour support services in metropolitan Melbourne and the surrounding suburbs. Our team is dedicated to providing personalised care that responds to the needs of each individual client. We keep caseloads smaller to deliver this level of service.

Skip to content