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South Lake resident fears loss of Cockburn Community Care carer

Bronwyn DonovanCockburn Gazette

SOUTH Lake resident Vivienne Dover fears she will lose her carer and close friend after receiving a concerning letter from Cockburn Community Care.

The letter received late August informed Ms Dover her home and community-based services including domestic assistance and social support were being cancelled.

Cockburn Community Care, which is funded by the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) My Way program, said in the letter the decision to cancel services was ‘purely financial’.

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Ms Dover (61) suffers from severe scoliosis and was declared legally blind after sustaining injuries in an incident at Elizabeth Quay train station where she was trampled by several people three years ago.

For the past 18 months she has used a cleaner, gardener and social support services from Cockburn Community Care.

“It’s not just me, there are about 63 of us that are going to have to find new carers,” Ms Dover said.

Prior to using Cockburn Community Care services, Ms Dover had to ask friends and family for help with the tasks she was no longer able to do herself.

“I didn’t feel independent and I didn’t want to be a burden on them,” she said.

Ms Dover has tried to contact her NDIS co-ordination to determine what will happen next but has been unsuccessful.

Cockburn Community Care is a City of Cockburn grant and fee funded service for the frail aged and people with disability.

From July 2015, services were run a part of a two-year trial initiated by the State Government.

In the past two years, City of Cockburn has paid about $44,000 to the organisation

City of Cockburn Governance and Community Services director Don Green said Cockburn Community Care Service will have a reduced scope of services following a review of the trial.

“The City of Cockburn decided it was not financially viable to continue to deliver individual support services for people with disability under the age of 65, however, it will continue to deliver social group programs for people with disability and all other home support services for people aged over the age of 65,” Mr Green said.

Cockburn Community Care also receives grant funding and subsidies WA Department of Health for Home and Community Care Services (HACC), Department of Health, Ageing and Aged Care and Department of Communities Disability Services for the WA National Disability Insurance Scheme (WA NDIS).

Mr Green said the service will work with its clients, families and carers to support the transition to other service providers over the next 12 months in line with their service contract end date, and will ensure that there is no gap in service delivery.

Cockburn Community Care delivers in-home care services to several of Perth’s southern suburbs.

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