Background
Acquiring new skills or knowledge can be used as a mechanism to assist clients to achieve their psychosocial rehabilitation goals. This can be achieved through a range of education approaches. Often, the link between education and achieving a psychosocial goal is indirect, and as such, identifying an appropriate education activity can be challenging.
The following are examples of when education may be an appropriate activity to include within a client’s psychosocial rehabilitation:
Further education / training and non-return to work rehabilitation
Where a person is participating in a non-return to work rehabilitation program, there is scope to consider education and training as a psychosocial activity, where:
Section 9.8 [4] of this library contains further information about the types of education and training that can be considered through rehabilitation. While Section 9.8 discusses education and training in a vocational context, the general information about training and education options still apply.
Key points for rehabilitation coordinators to consider
Study and non-accepted conditions
DVA will not fund further education or re-training required due to non-accepted conditions (that is, conditions which DVA does not recognise as being related to the client's ADF service). However, a short course, such as a short TAFE course, adult education or health self-management course could be considered as a psychosocial activity under a whole-of-person rehabilitation plan to help the person to manage the impact of non-accepted conditions and to facilitate their achievement of their rehabilitation goals for their accepted conditions. For more information about psychosocial activities to address non-accepted conditions please refer to section 6.3 [7] of this library.
Links
[1] https://clik.dva.gov.au/user/login?destination=comment/reply/80729%23comment-form
[2] https://clik.dva.gov.au/rehabilitation-policy-library/6-psychosocial-rehabilitation/62-overview-psychosocial-rehabilitation
[3] https://clik.dva.gov.au/rehabilitation-library/6-psychosocial-rehabilitation/66-monitoring-and-managing-psychosocial-rehabilitation-services
[4] https://clik.dva.gov.au/rehabilitation-policy-library/9-vocational-rehabilitation/98-retraining-and-further-education
[5] https://www.aqf.edu.au/
[6] mailto:rehabilitation@dva.gov.au
[7] https://clik.dva.gov.au/rehabilitation-policy-library/6-psychosocial-rehabilitation/63-activity-cannot-be-funded-under-psychosocial-rehabilitation