Restrictive Practice Reporting: Monthly Reports Without the Panic
If you use any regulated restrictive practice with an NDIS participant, you must report monthly through the NDIS Commission Portal.
Know what's reportable
The regulated restrictive practices are: chemical restraint, environmental restraint, mechanical restraint, physical restraint, and seclusion.
Capture at the point of use, not at month-end
Build a form workers complete each time they use a restrictive practice. Capture: participant, date and time, practice used, duration, the behaviour that preceded it, what was tried first, the outcome, and the worker's name.
Cross-check against the behaviour support plan
Every restrictive practice you use must be authorised by a current plan lodged with the Commission. Before you submit the monthly report:
- Is the practice authorised in the current plan?
- Was it used in line with the plan's conditions?
- Has the plan been reviewed within the required period?
Unauthorised use triggers a separate report
If you find a restrictive practice was used without authorisation, that's a reportable incident: 5 business days if no harm, 24 hours if there was harm.
Submit on time, every month
Draft reports in the first week of the month for the previous month, review them with your behaviour support practitioner, submit by mid-month.
Auditors check: monthly reports submitted on time, current behaviour support plans, fade-out strategies in plans, and evidence staff are trained on the specific practice.
