Do you have funding?
This question presents a bit of a minefield for people, but hopefully what we have below will feel familiar to you. When you reach out to us, let us know which stream of funding you have secured for your child. If this all looks foreign, don't stress — we can connect you with the people who can help you navigate it. Funding is how you gain access to our support, so it's important we get this bit clear.
First, you will need to contact Disability Support Link (DSL). The team at DSL will organise a Needs Assessment for your child in conjunction with you. If your child qualifies, this assessment will help with the allocation of funding and support services going forward.
Types of funding support
Disability Support Services (DSS) — Carer Support Hours / Respite Hours
After a detailed assessment from a staff member at Disability Support Link, a certain number of hours for in-home support or respite days will be allocated to your child. You will apply to your DSS contact to use those hours or days with Kindred.
Individualised Funding
After a detailed assessment from an assessor at Disability Support Link, a budget of monitored funds is allocated to your child. This allows for a little more flexibility in its use and distribution. You decide how you want to use your funding and who to use it with.
Manawanui Trust / Visionwest / Access Community Health
These are all host organisations that help to manage and distribute Individualised Funding. You'll have a contact person or team to communicate with when letting them know how you're using your funding. Similar guidelines apply as with Individualised Funding.
Enabling Good Lives (EGL)
This is a Ministry of Social Development-run stream of funding. This form of funding gives the primary caregiver independence and autonomy over the use of a predetermined budget. It is given to the budget overseer on a fortnightly basis, much like an allowance. There is a greater amount of flexibility, though guidelines still apply. Kindred is a registered disability support service with EGL.
ACC
This stream of funding is for those whose situation arises from an injury covered by ACC. Funding will be determined by an ACC recovery team or contact. They will assess the level of support your child and primary caregiver require in your home, and then you can let them know you'd like to use Kindred Paediatric Home Care as your service provider. Kindred is a registered ACC service provider.
Next steps
Once you know your type of funding and understand how to use it, you can reach out to us and we'll get you sorted!
"We have used Kindred Paediatric Homecare to support our son, and the difference has been incredible.
Before finding Kindred, we struggled with other agencies that either didn’t work with children, didn’t really understand children, or simply didn’t have support workers who genuinely wanted to work with kids.
From the beginning, Hannah understood exactly what we needed. She has a genuinely family-centred approach. She took the time to understand our son as a child, what he needed to feel safe and supported, and just as importantly, what would work for us as a family.
What really stood out was the care Hannah took in finding the right person, not just filling a shift. She made sure the support worker was someone who could connect with our son, understand his needs, and work well alongside us as his parents.
Hannah has been absolutely amazing, and we are incredibly grateful to have found Kindred. If you are looking for paediatric support from people who genuinely understand children and families, I couldn’t recommend them more highly."
Bex - Kindred Parent, Hamilton
HOW IT WORKS
The Kindred Process
From your first email to ongoing care, here's what to expect at every stage.
1. Reach Out
You can contact us via email or phone to receive information on our service and what to expect. We will endeavour to be in touch with you as soon as possible.
2. Catch Up
You're ready to get organised, so one of our Nurse Coordinators will be in contact to organise an in-person meeting with you. This is a chance to meet your child and look at what kind of support will help most. We'll create a care plan and a schedule of care. A service agreement will be signed, and we'll be in touch with any further information you may need.
3. Getting Organised
From there, our team will work on matching your child and family with a support worker, healthcare assistant or registered nurse. This may be through staff we already have employed, or we may need to recruit new staff. This part of the process may take some time while we make the right match. This is important to us, as we think it's essential for this person to be someone you can trust and someone your child wants to be around. The connection they make is key.
4. Meet and Greet
Once we have someone we think will match well, we'll be in touch to have our healthcare worker (HCW) come and visit with you and your child. This is a chance for the HCW to spend a little time getting to know you both and see how you do life at home. The nurse who met you at your Catch Up will be in touch to see how the Meet and Greet went. We'll confirm a schedule and start date once you're happy with how things are going.
5. Check In
After a week or two with your schedule in place, your Nurse Coordinator will be in touch to see how it's going. We can look at any further support needed or adjustments to schedules. And remember, this check-in can happen whenever you need it, whether it's the first or eighth day of care. Once things are settled and working well, your Nurse Coordinator will be in touch every month or two to see how you're doing.
Supporting families across Hamilton, and growing into the wider Waikato.
