CEO Archives - Myhorizon

A message from Joe – Spring 2022

Welcome to the Spring Edition of our Community News.

Given the roller coaster ride we have all been on over these past couple of years, never before has our theme of “with you for you” been so relevant for our clients and participants that we serve.

Recently we surveyed participants who access our lifestyle, accommodation, recreation programs and support coordination services with overwhelming positive satisfaction results being recorded.

This feedback confirmed the important role that Myhorizon plays in so many lives, a role that is far more than delivering services for which we are funded. Personal satisfaction and other aspects of our service delivery across every division of the organisation reaffirmed confidence in our ability to meet and exceed expectations especially during some very tough times.

Myhorizon has continued to deliver responsive, individualised programs tailored to meet the needs of our service users, with much of the feedback received centred around the positive impact that our staff have on the lives of individuals.

As a registered service provider we are rigorously and independently audited against the various standards including the NDIS Practice Standards and the National Disability Service Standards with positive results recorded during not only this past year but every year.

Myhorizon as a not-for-profit organisation has not just been another service provider in the crowd but has proudly maintained its focus on delivering a quality service by ”uplifting individual lives by creating connected communities”.

Spring brings transformation, new beginnings and a positive outlook as we leave the challenges of the past behind. There will be many new opportunities emerge and we will continue to embrace a strong and purposeful future for people with disabilities.

I trust you will enjoy reading our latest Community News.

Joe Gamblin,
CEO

A message from Joe – Winter 2022

We never know what is around the corner. The lingering impact of COVID, the recent change in government, economic insecurity and cost of living increases coupled with the extraordinary world events unfolding in Ukraine all contribute to a period of uncertainty, high stress levels and increased mental health concerns. COVID has brought many challenges with wide disruption of services.

Fortunately, Myhorizon has been proactive in ensuring the safety of our Participants by following COVID safe measures including the compulsory vaccination of all staff. Disruption has been kept to a bare minimum where at all possible as the virus has spread throughout the community.

On top of all of these issues there has been enormous stress as a result of the constantly changing NDIS. In the lead up to the Australian Government election there was a groundswell of criticism demanding that the NDIS be remodelled to reflect its original intention.

Participants, their nominees and service providers have all vented their frustrations. It’s been a mess to say the least and hopefully the new government will deliver on its promise to fix the NDIS.

Fortunately, Myhorizon deals with the complexity of the NDIS every single day and though we can’t change the rules we do have expert knowledge of the scheme and will always advocate where we can on behalf of Participants.

I would like to pass on congratulations to our Employment Services division who again have blitzed their recent quality standards audit and consistently achieve 5 star status for Participants across a number of their sites. Finding and keeping jobs for people with a disability can make an extraordinary difference to their lives. Our latest survey of our Employment & Training Division Participants recorded an overall satisfaction rate of 98%, with 73% of Participants being very satisfied with our service. Congratulations to the Employment Services Team for such an outstanding result.

It is pleasing that during the struggles and disruption over the past couple of years, we have been able to maintain our commitment to our Participants of being with you, for you.

Joe Gamblin,
CEO

A message from Joe – Summer 2021/22

It is refreshing to almost see the end of this crazy year. This festive season is a time for us to restock, refresh, and remind ourselves of the good things in our lives, and the hope we hold for the future.

I am personally thankful for the amazing staff we have at Myhorizon who have taken on all of the challenges they have been confronted with, especially the additional pressure as a result of the impact of COVID.

Safety of our clients has been our number one priority and we are fortunate to have been able to continue to operate our various programs with minimum disruption. Mandatory vaccinations are now in place and all Myhorizon staff delivering services have been vaccinated.

2022 is a year of new beginnings and new opportunities to be embraced, and Myhorizon is here to support you in the journey.

From the Board, management and staff, we wish all of our Myhorizon subscribers the very best for the Festive Season. We will continue to be with you, for you in in 2022.

Joe Gamblin
CEO

Image: Myhorizon Disability Support Professionals – Jade & Jackie, with CEO Joe Gamblin

A message from Joe – Winter 2021

Welcome to our 2021 Winter newsletter. An opportunity to highlight some of the important work that has kept the Myhorizon team busy these past few months. The stories in this edition will inspire you, showcasing just how wonderful our participants are, displaying courage, collaboration, perseverance and positivity.

On another note, Myhorizon recently had our annual audit done across our Employment and NDIS services, and I am thrilled to say that we successfully completed both audits with flying colours. As part of Myhorizon’s service delivery obligations, independent auditors interviewed Myhorizon staff, clients and participants on a randomly selected basis and collected feedback which was overwhelmingly positive and showed how much our clients value our services.

The audit looked at staff qualifications including expertise, experience and training, incident management process and policies, complaints management and risk management process/policies. There were no minor or major non-compliances, which is something we can be proud about.

As we continue to deliver our services, we are reminded of the need to practice COVID Safe measures in our communities, including social distancing, frequent hand washing and use of hand sanitisers, and wearing of masks where required.

The recent fourth lock-down in Victoria, highlights how easy things can change, impacting the economy, numerous businesses and individuals. The impact on mental health cannot be under estimated either. Fortunately, disability services continue to be listed as “essential”, however the reality of any potential lockdowns in Queensland, definitely has flow on effects to all services, so we all need to remain vigilant.

With vaccinations now recommended and available, there are many good reasons to be vaccinated as outlined on the Australian Government’s Department of Health website: https://www.health.gov.au/initiatives-and-programs/covid-19-vaccines/getting-vaccinated-for-covid-19/why-should-i-get-vaccinated-for-covid-19 .

Many of our staff, clients and Participants have been vaccinated, and we also ask that you please consider being vaccinated if you are eligible.

Joe Gamblin, CEO