It's clinical work, but most of it happens at a kitchen table, not in a clinic.
When behaviour gets in the way of everyday life.
There are safety or wellbeing concerns, or behaviour is escalating.
Behaviour is getting in the way of learning, participation, or connection.
Things haven't shifted, despite trying different approaches.
Behaviour support is an evidence-based therapy after brain injury. Every injury is different, but some changes are common: thinking and memory take more effort, processing slows, fatigue arrives earlier, and the brain's braking system for impulses can be affected. Clinical trials, including Australian research, show that behaviour support reduces behaviours of concern after brain injury. Because we're psychologist-led with clinical neuropsychology training, every plan starts from how the person's brain is working now, so the strategies are ones they can genuinely use.
In dementia, changes in behaviour are usually communication: unmet needs, pain, confusion, fear, overstimulation, or a loss of control the person can no longer put into words. Australian and international guidelines recommend person-centred, non-medication approaches as the first response, and that is exactly what behaviour support is. We work out what the behaviour is saying, then change the environment, routines and interactions to meet the need, protecting the person's dignity and the relationships around them.
Positive behaviour support grew out of decades of research with autistic people and people with intellectual disability, and it is the framework the NDIS requires for behaviour support. The evidence is consistent: understand what a behaviour does for a person, teach skills that meet the same need, and adjust the environment around them, and quality of life improves while behaviours of concern reduce. Every plan is co-designed with the person and the people who support them.
Referral and getting started, confirming funding, meeting your practitioner.
Assessment, formulation, and co-designing your support plan. Usually 3 to 6 weeks.
Implementation, training the people around you, and monitoring what's working.
Formal reviews at least every 12 months, usually more often.
When you first reach out, our team will confirm a few basics:
If you have NDIS funding: We'll check that behaviour support is included in your plan and confirm your provider details.
If funding comes from elsewhere: Aged Care, Support at Home, DVA, Workers Compensation, or private, just let us know. We can work with most funding sources.
You'll be introduced to your behaviour support practitioner. You can read about them on our team page. If you'd rather see someone specific, we'll do our best to make that happen.
This phase usually takes 3 to 6 weeks, depending on what's involved and how often we can meet.
When we first meet, the main aim is to understand what's actually happening, not to judge, not to work out what someone is "doing wrong." Just to genuinely understand the behaviour and what's behind it. Then we design a plan with you that changes things.
We'll talk to you, family members, support workers, teachers, or anyone else involved. We're building a complete picture from different perspectives, everyone who sees the person day-to-day.
Your practitioner might watch what happens during normal routines. If behaviour mainly happens in certain places (school, home, community, an aged care facility), we want to understand what's different about those settings.
We'll ask you to keep track of when behaviour happens, not to blame anyone, but to spot patterns. This might be brief notes on your phone, or a simple tracking sheet we design together.
We might use assessments that help us understand anxiety, sensory sensitivities, communication needs, pain, cognitive changes, or how someone processes change. We only do this when it's genuinely useful.
We'll review medical history, development information, or diagnosis details where relevant. Pain, hearing loss, communication differences, sensory sensitivity, medication changes, or cognitive decline can all show up as behaviour that doesn't make sense unless you know the background.
We'll consider whether there are any safety concerns that need special attention, and discuss with you how to manage them together.
By the end of this phase, your practitioner writes up a formulation, a story of what's happening: what does the behaviour look like, what seems to trigger it, what need might it be meeting. We share this with you. It should make sense. If it doesn't, we keep talking until it does.
This usually takes 1 to 2 weeks once the formulation is done.
A behaviour support plan isn't something we write and hand over. It's something we design with you. Your knowledge of the person and what's actually realistic matters more than anything we bring.
We look at what's making the behaviour the easiest way for the person to meet a need, and what could work better.
Changes to the environment, changes to how people interact, teaching new skills, or strategies for when behaviour does happen.
If there are safety concerns, we'll discuss them with you. In some cases, additional safeguards might be needed while other supports are building. We'll talk through this together before anything is put in place.
A good plan spells out who does what in real terms, and how you'll know things are getting better.
If you're NDIS funded, the plan fits your goals and funding. More than that, we make sure it's actually usable, something that guides real life, not something that sits in a folder. Everyone involved gets a copy and understands what they're doing and why.
This is the longest phase. It's where the actual work happens.
People supporting the person will be trained in the strategies in the plan. This isn't a one-off workshop. Your practitioner will show you how, watch you do it, give feedback, troubleshoot what isn't working, and adjust as needed, in real places: home, school, community, aged care facility.
We keep tracking the same information from the assessment phase. Is the plan working? Are we seeing changes? Do we need to adjust something?
Depending on your plan, your practitioner might visit weekly, fortnightly, monthly, or differently. Between visits, they're available if something isn't working or you need advice.
Things rarely work perfectly the first time. If a strategy isn't landing, if something unexpected has happened, or if you've spotted something better, we talk about it and adjust. This is expected.
If safety strategies are part of your plan, we monitor them carefully and review regularly.
Formal reviews happen at least every 12 months, usually more often.
Every few months (or when something big changes), we step back and look at the bigger picture:
These reviews involve you, your practitioner, and anyone else who matters. It's a conversation about what's working, what's not, and what comes next.
The goal over time is to build skills and strategies that become part of everyday life, not something that needs constant support. When that starts happening, we gradually step back.
Your behaviour support practitioner is a qualified professional trained in evidence-based behaviour support. They may be a registered psychologist, or they may have qualifications in disability support, aged care, or another relevant field. You'll know who they are from the start, and you'll work with the same person throughout.
This depends on what you need and how it's funded. In the early stages, usually weekly or fortnightly. Once a plan is in place and working, it might be monthly or less. It's adjusted based on what you actually need, not a fixed schedule.
Behaviour support isn't a lifelong thing unless nothing changes. As skills develop and strategies become part of everyday life, we gradually step back. The whole process might be several months to a couple of years, depending on the situation. We review regularly and discuss what comes next.
Safety is the first priority. If there's risk of harm, your practitioner will work with you to put strategies in place. If safety strategies or restrictions are needed, they'll be clearly discussed, agreed with you, and documented.
Yes. We coordinate with your aged care facility, NDIS support workers, therapists, medical team, or anyone else involved in your support. Behaviour support works best when everyone's on the same page.
Behaviour support can be provided privately. We can also work with Aged Care funding, DVA, Support at Home, Workers Compensation, or other systems. Get in touch and we'll talk through your options.
We change it. There's no point continuing with something that isn't helping. We'll look at why, maybe the strategy needs tweaking, maybe we misunderstood something, maybe circumstances have changed. We troubleshoot together and adjust.
Your information stays between you, your practitioner, and anyone else you've agreed should know, your NDIS planner, aged care facility, school, or other support providers. We follow privacy law strictly. If we need to share information with anyone else, we ask you first.
Sometimes the connection isn't there, or a different approach makes more sense. Tell us. We don't take it personally. We'd rather you found the right fit than continue with someone who isn't.
We respond within two business days. Don't have all the details? Send what you have.
Prefer to call or email? 0413 213 810 · contact@richersupport.com