NDIS High Intensity Support Worker Training: What You Need to Know
If a support worker is delivering clinical tasks for an NDIS participant: administering medication, managing a PEG tube, performing suctioning, there are specific training requirements under the NDIS Practice Standards that must be met. This guide explains what "high intensity daily activities" are, who can perform them, and what training is required.
What Are High Intensity Daily Activities?
High Intensity Daily Activities (HIDA) are NDIS support tasks that involve clinical skill, carry risk if performed incorrectly, and require competency assessment by a qualified health professional. They include: medication administration (oral, transdermal, subcutaneous), complex bowel care (digital rectal examination, suppository insertion, enema administration), urinary catheter management, enteral tube feeding (PEG and NG), tracheostomy care (suctioning, inner cannula changes), ventilator management, subcutaneous and IV infusion management, and seizure management with rescue medication administration.
Who Can Perform High Intensity Daily Activities?
There are two categories. First, some tasks can only be performed by a registered nurse. These include catheter insertion, complex bowel interventions like digital rectal examination, and prescription medication administration under clinical supervision. Second, some tasks can be performed by trained and assessed support workers: but only when they have been formally trained in the specific task for the specific participant and assessed as competent by a registered nurse or qualified health professional.
A generic Certificate III in Individual Support does not satisfy this requirement. The NDIS Practice Standards require participant-specific competency assessment.
What Training Is Required?
The NDIS Practice Standards are clear: support workers who perform High Intensity Daily Activities must be trained and assessed as competent. The assessment must be done by a qualified health professional, typically a registered nurse, and documentation must be kept on file. This is not just best practice; it is a compliance requirement for registered NDIS providers.
The training must be specific to the participant. A support worker trained on a PEG feeding pump for one participant must be separately trained for a different participant who uses a different pump or feed formula.
What Happens at NDIS Audit Without This Documentation?
If a registered NDIS provider cannot demonstrate that its support workers have been trained and assessed as competent in the High Intensity supports they are delivering, this is a non-conformity under the NDIS Practice Standards. In serious cases, it can result in a corrective action plan or suspension of registration.
How First Priority Care Can Help
Our registered nurses provide High Intensity training, practical competency assessment and written documentation for support workers across Queensland. Training is tailored to the specific participant and their care plan: not generic. Workers receive a certificate of completion and we provide written competency records suitable for NDIS audit.
We also provide training packages for disability organisations who need to upskill their entire workforce. Contact us on 1800 402 205 or visit our Support Worker Training page to learn more.
Ready to talk to a registered NDIS provider?
Call us on 1800 402 205 or submit a referral online.
