Assistive Technology
The right equipment, prescribed properly, trialled before you commit, and reviewed as things change.
Assistive technology is any equipment that helps someone do something they otherwise couldn’t do safely or independently — from a shower stool to a power wheelchair with scripted seating. An occupational therapist assesses what’s needed, trials options with suppliers, and writes the prescription and evidence that funding bodies require.
Who this is for
Anyone whose mobility has changed and whose current equipment no longer fits
People needing complex equipment — power wheelchairs, custom seating, ceiling or mobile hoists
Someone at risk of pressure injuries who needs proper cushion and mattress prescription
Families managing transfers that are becoming unsafe
People whose existing equipment was prescribed years ago and never reviewed
What you end up with
- An assistive technology prescription and clinical justification
- Coordinated supplier quotes
- Set-up, fitting and adjustment at delivery
- Training for you, your family or your support workers
What’s involved
Assessment
Posture, transfers, skin integrity, the spaces the equipment has to work in, and who else will be using it.
Options and trials
We arrange trials with suppliers so you use the equipment in your own home before anyone commits funding to it.
Prescription
A written report with specifications, clinical justification and quotes, formatted to what your funder needs to see.
Set-up and review
We’re there when it’s delivered, we adjust it, we show whoever needs to use it, and we review it as needs change.
How it’s funded
NDIS. Equipment is generally funded from Capital Supports. Low-cost items may not need a report; mid and high-cost complex assistive technology requires OT assessment and prescription.
Support at Home. Equipment sits under the AT-HM scheme in three tiers, with higher tiers requiring allied health assessment and prescription.
Private and Medicare. We also assess privately where there’s no funding in place, or where someone wants it sorted quickly.
Why we do this in your home
Equipment fails when it’s prescribed to a person and not to a life. A wheelchair that’s perfect in a showroom is useless if it can’t turn in the hallway, won’t fit in the car, or can’t get up the ramp at the back door.
Measuring in the home means measuring the doorways, the thresholds, the bathroom turning circle and the boot of the car — before anyone spends the money, not after.
Common questions
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For anything beyond basic low-cost equipment, yes. Funders require an occupational therapist’s assessment and clinical justification for mid and high-cost assistive technology, and complex items like power wheelchairs and scripted seating always need it.
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Yes. We can arrange trials with suppliers in your own home so you can find out whether something actually works before funding is spent on it.
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Assessment and trial usually take a few weeks. Funder approval and manufacturing time for custom equipment can add months, particularly for scripted seating. We’ll tell you the realistic timeframe at the start.
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Yes. Equipment prescribed years ago is often no longer right — needs change, bodies change, and cushions and mattresses wear out. A review is usually quicker and cheaper than people expect.
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Yes. Pressure care assessment, cushion and mattress prescription and a written pressure care plan are all part of what we do, and we’ll train the people providing daily support in how to use it.
Related services
Talk to us about assistive technology
Tell us what’s going on and we’ll tell you whether this is the right service, what it will involve, and when we could get to you.