Conferences and Events

Learning for Life is committed to the ongoing professional development of its staff to ensure that the children and families we support receive therapy that follows best practise. We do this through collaboration, undertaking research, on-site training and the attendance and presentation at conferences and events.

In 2023 so far, L4Life staff have attended the NDIS Annual Conference, a two-day workshop by Dr Greg Hanley, through Autism Pathways, and the Association for Behaviour Analysis Australia annual conference.  The following is a snapshot of these events and the takeaways from the staff in attendance.

NDIS Conference – June 2023

Early in June our General Manager, Operations, Victoria Crane, attended the Annual DSC NDIS Conference in Sydney. The event brings together NDIS industry leaders from around Australia, with attendees getting a chance to connect with others in order to build relationships, gain insights and discuss key issues.

The conference program featured NDIS leader’s and people with disability speaking, hosting and participating in panel discussions. “It was great to hear the NDIS Independent Review Co-Chairs provide their insights, including the potential of outcome focussed pricing and the importance of considering the broader family circumstances,” said Vic. “A presentation on disability workforce satisfaction levels also resonated, with industry survey results affirming connection with clients and seeing the impact of our work to be the key factors motivating workers in our sector.”

“A key takeaway for me, which came out of a particularly honest and inspiring Q&A session, is the need for the NDIA to report on outcomes achieved and the positive economic benefits associated with participant goals being reached, as an important counterbalance to society’s focus on the financial cost of the scheme.”

Victoria also gained valuable insight into the trends and financial pressures experienced by other registered NDIS Providers. “The data presented highlighted the challenges in the sector associated with increasing wages and compliance costs, which is contrary to media commentary that centres around service providers overcharging and NDIS cost blow outs,” she said. “This reiterates the importance of listening to and learning from each other in order to work through the challenges and find opportunities to ensure best practice and high quality, compliant support is delivered in a financially sustainable way.”

It’s important for our staff to be engaged and involved in events such as this, to share and exchange insights and ideas with peers and industry leaders.

Dr Greg Hanley workshop – Autism Pathways

In April this year, L4Life Clinical consultant, Claire Birrell, attended a professional development event run by Autism Pathways – ‘A Comprehensive and Compassionate Approach for Addressing Problem Behaviour: A two-day workshop with Dr. Greg Hanley’.  This is Claire’s brief outtake of the event:

“During the workshop, the attendees learnt about Dr. Hanley’s practical functional assessment and skill-based treatment model which focuses on addressing behaviours of concern in a safe, person-centred, trauma-informed manner.  The two days were packed full of highly engaging content and I found myself buzzing with ideas and inspiration by the end of it.  While many of the specific strategies put forward were novel, I was pleased to find that Dr. Hanley’s approach is very much in line with L4Life’s existing ethos.”

 Some of Claire’s favourite Dr. Hanley quotes throughout the 2 days were:

“Behaviour analysis means I promise to understand this behaviour before addressing it.” 
“Safety, televisibility and rapport are prioritised over procedures”
“Don’t start with the ‘ask’, start with the ‘give’.”

For those interested in reading more from Dr. Hanley,  Claire highly recommends his article ‘A perspective on today’s ABA’ – https://practicalfunctionalassessment.com/2021/09/09/a-perspective-on-todays-aba-by-dr-greg-hanley/”

Thank you Claire for these insights.

Association for Behaviour Analysis Australia Conference – July 2023

“Behaviour Analysis in Australia: Diverse and Relevant” was the theme of the 2023 Association for Behaviour Analysis Australia (ABAA) Conference held in Brisbane at the end of July.  L4Life staff who were in attendance included: Pam Roy (CEO), Victoria Crane (General Manager, Operations). Emma Miller (Clinical Director), Sara Wood (Head of Allied Health), Claire Birrell (Clinical Consultant), Elisha Mont (Clinical Consultant), Jodi Harris (Early Childhood Clinical Consultant) and Tiffany Poljakovic (Early Childhood Clinical Consultant).

The conference brought together a diverse group of researchers, professionals, and academics currently working in the field of behaviour analysis, both here and internationally and provided an opportunity for staff to connect with contemporaries and keep up-to-date with current research.  Claire Birrell also presented a session to attendees titled “Streamlining data collection and management to maximise client progress”, which highlighted the purpose and features of the L4Life data app as well as Claire’s experience, learnings and outcomes in assisting with the developing the app.

Head of Allied Health, Sarah Wood, was enthused by the breadth of subjects available to explore via workshops and presentations. “It was exciting to see a wider variety of talks that encompassed case studies, and how to provide supports within the NDIS and education frameworks. It was also promising to hear importance put on research being conducted within everyday clinical settings.”

L4Life CEO, Pam Roy said “The conference was a great way to connect with our colleagues that we don’t see on a frequent basis.  A key take-away for me was the concept of cultural competency versus cultural humility as explained by Trina Spencer from the US in her presentation discussing the power of narratives.  It was also an opportunity to hear about research that is being done across the field with some exciting implications.”