17 August 2021

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Three-day lockdown in the Greater Darwin and Katherine regions

The Northern Territory Government has issued public health directions that affect providers in the Greater Darwin and Katherine regions, including those delivering supports in disability accommodation settings.

Key points

• The areas of Greater Darwin and Katherine entered a three-day lockdown from 12.01pm ACST on Monday 16 August 2021.
• Disability support workers are classified as essential workers and should continue providing supports to people with disability, where possible, in accordance with the restrictions.
• There is specific advice that applies to residential disability settings.
• All providers should continue to monitor local information published by the Northern Territory Government on a regular basis for changes to local restrictions - including additional lockdown announcements in new areas and lockdown extensions.
• Notify the NDIS Commission of any significant changes to services or supports as a result of the new restrictions.
• Resources are available for providers and workers supporting participants in lockdown.
• All providers are reminded of their obligations regarding continuity of critical supports, and to review outbreak management and business continuity plans.

Updated Health Directions

The Northern Territory Government has imposed a three-day lockdown from 12.01pm ACST on Monday 16 August 2021 in the following areas:

• City of Darwin
• City of Palmerston
• Litchfield Council
• Wagait Shire
• Belyuen Shire
• Dundee
• Bynoe
• Charlotte
• Cox Peninsula
• Municipality of Katherine including Tindal

Face masks must be worn outside the home in lockdown areas, including while delivering disability services and supports.

We encourage you to read the full details on the Northern Territory Government website.

Please ensure that you, your workers and the people with disability that you support understand what these changes are, and how they affect the supports and services you deliver.

Disability workers are essential workers

Disability workers are classified as essential workers under these restrictions, and should continue providing supports to people with disability, where possible, in accordance with the restrictions.

If you support people with disability who live alone, make contact with them to ensure they have everything they need to stay at home safely. Offer assistance if they need it.

Advice for residential disability settings

Residential disability providers are required to use the Territory Check In QR Code system to collect details of all workers and visitors entering the premises.

Please refer to the Northern Territory Government website for more information.

Monitor local information

All providers in the Northern Territory should continue to monitor local information published by the Northern Territory Government on a regular basis for changes to local restrictions. These may include additional lockdown announcements in new areas and lockdown extensions.

Notification of changes or events

You must notify the NDIS Commission of any change or event that significantly affects your ability to comply with any of your conditions of registration, including compliance with the NDIS Practice Standards. You must use the COVID-19 notification of events form to report these changes.

Your requirements to notify the NDIS Commission of reportable incidents under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (Incident Management and Reportable Incidents) Rules 2018 are separate from the COVID-19 notification of changes or events and remain unchanged.

Resources for participants, providers and workers

1. The Council for Intellectual Disability (CID) has produced Easy Read resources for participants living in residential disability settings who may be required to isolate due to a COVID-19 outbreak:

• What is happening in my home (PDF 2.1MB)
• Looking after your health in lockdown (PDF 3.6MB)
• If you think you have Coronavirus

CID has also developed a Plain English guide for staff (PDF 1MB) in residential disability settings.

2. Additional COVID-19 resources that have been developed by CID are available on their website.

3. The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has developed a poster outlining the steps for putting on and taking off PPE. This may be useful for providers who are required to implement combined contact and droplet precautions in addition to standard precautions

We strongly encourage you to share these resources with the people with disability that you support and your workers, as appropriate.

Continuity of support obligations and outbreak preparedness

All providers are reminded of their obligations regarding continuity of critical supports, and to review outbreak management and business continuity plans.

Refer to our provider alert of 6 August 2021.

NDIS Commission COVID-19 information and resources

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) information webpage on the NDIS Commission website contains links to updates, training, alerts and other resources.

We also have a COVID-19 webpage containing information for people with disability, and a webpage of frequently asked questions about COVID-19 for all stakeholders.

Contact us

Call: 1800 035 544 (free call from landlines). Our contact centre is open 9.00am to 5.00pm (9.00am to 4.30pm in the NT), Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays.

Email: contactcentre@ndiscommission.gov.au

Website: www.ndiscommission.gov.au