Positive Behaviour Support in Lismore: Meet PBS practitioner Andi Saunders
Get started with Positive Behaviour Support near you in Lismore, NSW, by making a referral on our website. We support NDIS participants throughout the Northern Rivers region, from Lismore, Casino and Kyogle to Ballina, Byron Bay and Mullumbimby.
If you’d like to learn about our behaviour support practitioner in the Richmond-Tweed region of NSW, read on!
Meet Andi Saunders, Behaviour Support Practitioner in Lismore
Hi Andi, it’s great to have you on our team in Lismore! Tell us about you!
I grew up in the Northern Rivers, and have lived here for most of my life. I live with my husband and our four teenagers in Lismore. I have two favourite times of day — 5am when I wake up and the house is quiet before anyone else gets out of bed, and afternoon walks with my cavoodle, Leonard. I enjoy cooking, learning new languages and gardening.
You have nursing and counselling qualifications. Why did you choose to study these fields?
My dad had type one diabetes, and when I was little he used to call me his little nurse. I also spent some time in hospital as a child and remembered how nice the nurses were to me and how it made a difference to my stay there. After that, I always wanted to be able to help people improve their wellbeing and quality of life.
I started working in aged care when my kids were little and studied nursing while I was doing that but I enjoyed working with elderly residents, and especially those with a diagnosis of dementia, so much that I chose to stay with it, though I took on more of a case management role for elderly residents in the community.
I left aged care to look after my dad at the end of his life, and after that I didn’t want to go back to aged care but I knew I still wanted to work helping care for people. It was then that I retrained to work as a counsellor. I love working as a counsellor, but I felt myself missing the dynamic nature of case management. That’s when I found Ability Consultants and decided to move into Positive Behaviour Support.
How has your experience in nursing influenced your approach to supporting individuals with disability?
Working as a nurse has helped me have greater empathy for people. I understand that each person struggles with different things, no matter their diagnosis. And on the flip side, people have strengths that are unique to their personality and capabilities. Diagnosis doesn’t come into those factors for me. I allow everyone I work with to lead me in how best to support them, rather than coming in with preconceived ideas about how to manage their care.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of working in Positive Behaviour Support?
Seeing smiles on the faces of my clients and their support people is something that brightens my day. I love to be able to make positive changes for the people I work with and that doesn’t just mean the longer term work of implementing behaviour support plans. Sometimes it’s just showing up when someone’s had a bad morning and helping them have a giggle.
It’s also awesome to be able to hear from family and support staff about little ways that a person’s quality of life has improved because of the work I have done. I’m so lucky to be able to do what I do because almost every aspect of it brings me joy — even writing up behaviour support plans.
Through your experience supporting individuals with complex needs, what important lessons have you learnt about supporting adults with disabilities?
I’m passionate about trying to find solutions for people that are dynamic. Strategies might only fit in one situation — not every situation — so it’s helpful to come up with many options and give people more choices. I also really love being able to find one solution that works to improve someone’s quality of life in multiple domains.
About Positive Behaviour Support and its impact
Can you tell us about a time you’ve seen Positive Behaviour Support in action and the effect it had on a person and/or their family?
I was working with a client who was not managing at home. She had lost a lot of weight because she wasn’t eating. We found out that she didn’t have the skills to prepare food. There were also some other serious challenges that put her at risk of no longer being able to live at home. When we were able to understand her behaviours, we put in strategies that helped meet her needs and build skills, and she was able to stay at home. That was so important to her as it allowed her to maintain her closest friendship with her neighbour and also keep living with her dog.
How does your experience as a counsellor influence your approach to Positive Behaviour Support?
My approach really comes from a cause-not-symptoms approach. I’m not worried about the symptoms that are displayed (behaviours) because I know that once we find out the real cause of behaviours, the behaviours will diminish on their own. I also work with a person-centred approach, emphasising unconditional positive regard and empathetic understanding.
Can you share an example of a diagnosis or behaviour of concern and how Positive Behaviour Support can help?
I have worked with individuals who have psychosocial diagnoses and comorbid substance use disorders. Positive Behaviour Support can really help with this in two main ways. Firstly, when families and support people receive education around substance misuse it really changes the way they approach the individual’s substance-related behaviours. This in turn may decrease challenging behaviour and create opportunity for more open communication about the substance of concern.
Positive Behaviour Support also works with the individual in this situation to help them understand when their substance use may be an attempt at managing their mental health symptoms, giving them an opportunity to make healthier choices such as using appropriate medications or anxiety management techniques.
Positive Behaviour Support in Lismore
Which communities do you provide Positive Behaviour Support in and around Lismore?
I work in Kyogle, Casino, Lismore, Goonellabah, Alstonville, Ballina, Byron Bay and Mullumbimby, as well as their surrounding suburbs. I do a lot of travel for my work, but I really enjoy it and I try to make a day of it — if I’m going in one direction I will see more than one person on the day, if I can.
Do you focus on supporting NDIS participants with specific diagnoses or age groups?
I’m passionate about working with people who experience addictive behaviours and older persons and people who are involved in the criminal justice system. I prefer working with teenagers and adults.
How to get started with Positive Behaviour Support in Lismore
How can NDIS participants in Lismore get started with Positive Behaviour Support?
The first step is to make a referral for Positive Behaviour Support on our website. You can do this anytime and you can make your own referral, or a member of your support team can make a referral on your behalf.
If you have any questions about Positive Behaviour Support in Lismore, please feel welcome to call our team on 1300 694 625 or send a message using our contact form.
Life in Lismore and the Byron Bay region
What do you love most about living in Lismore and the Byron Bay region?
I love that it’s just a quick drive to the Gold Coast and Brisbane if we want to access any city services, even though it’s regional. I also love that there are so many beautiful nature spaces to explore — I could live here forever and never do all the trails. The people around here are very artistic and that makes for great feasts for the eyes and ears. There’s also great food. People are really friendly and accepting.
Can you tell us about accessible recreational activities or locations in Lismore and the Byron Bay region?
Our region has some really great accessible services. I love the sensory garden at the Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens for people with vision impairment. The garden is made to experience olfactory and tactile stimulation.
Another cool thing is the hire-a-beach-wheelchair, available at Evans Head and Byron Bay. This is of course in addition to the many boardwalks, including one at Victoria Park, that are made for wheelchair access. Of course, there’s also Summerland Farm which is made not only for access, but also provides a lot of jobs for people with a disability.
About Ability Consultants
Ability Consultants is a Registered NDIS Provider in Lismore. We support NDIS participants and private clients throughout NSW, QLD, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia.
We primarily provide Positive Behaviour Support however we also deliver psychology support in parts of Australia, including psychology assessments and therapy.
About Positive Behaviour Support
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