Application
This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to encourage, support and promote self-advocacy. The promotion and facilitation of self-advocacy contributes to a person’s self-determination, empowerment and right to make informed choices in regard to all aspects of their life.
This unit applies to work with people living with mental illness in a range of community services work contexts.
The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and State/Territory legislation, Australian/New Zealand standards and industry codes of practice
Elements and Performance Criteria
ELEMENT | PERFORMANCE CRITERIA |
Elements define the essential outcomes | Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. |
1. Assist individuals or groups to identify their issues, rights and preferred options | 1.1 Apply strategic questioning to clarify advocacy issues 1.2 Review and provide information on self advocacy in relation to individual or group issues 1.3 Assist individual or group to identify their own needs and rights and to determine if their rights are being infringed or not being met 1.4 Work with individuals or groups to evaluate and negotiate advocacy options 1.5 Document advocacy options according to organisation policy and procedures |
2. Enable individuals to gain self-advocacy skills | 2.1 Build a shared understanding about advocacy issues and choices available 2.2 Identify potential barriers and relevant strategies to overcome them 2.3 Collaboratively develop an individual’s self-advocacy strategy and arguments 2.4 Provide opportunities for practicing self-advocacy 2.5 Identify and utilise self-advocacy resources 2.6 Support individuals to document the circumstances and events relevant to the advocacy situation |
3. Follow up and support individuals after self-advocacy | 3.1 Follow up and reflect with the individual the self-advocacy process and outcomes 3.2 Identify further strategies and next steps according to individual’s needs 3.3 Provide additional advocacy support to individuals, when needed, to further enhance their self-advocacy efforts |
4. Promote self-advocacy | 4.1 Model aspects of self-advocacy through assertive communication skills 4.2 Identify and use opportunities to promote the right of individuals to self-advocate 4.3 Encourage a culture of self-advocacy and dignity of risk 4.4 Develop promotional material about self-advocacy 4.5 Raise awareness about barriers to self-advocacy |
Foundation Skills
The Foundation Skills describe those required skills (such as language, literacy, numeracy and employment skills) that are essential to performance. | |
Foundation skills essential to performance are explicit in the performance criteria of this unit of competency. | |