Melissa McCarthy
Michelle Disbery
Director
RIDBC Educational Services
Head RIDBC Early Childhood
Services (Hearing Impairment)
RIDBC services
Educational Services
Early intervention
Preschools
Schools
School Support Service
Teleschool
Clinical Services
Audiology
Cochlear Implant Services
Assessment
Therapy
Community Support
By providing quality &
innovative education & other
services, RIDBC will achieve
the best outcomes for current
& future generations with
hearing and/or vision loss
throughout Australia
RIDBC is Australia’s largest independent provider of services
to children with diagnosed hearing or vision impairments
RIDBC Staffing
Wide range of professionals with
additional qualifications and
experience in sensory impairment
Extensive continuing professional
education through RIDBC Renwick
Centre
Early Childhood Teachers, Teachers of
the Deaf, Teachers of Vision
Impairment, LSLS Certified AVTs,
Special Education Teachers
Speech Pathologists, Audiologists,
Occupational Therapists,
Physiotherapists, Orthoptists and
Access Technology Consultants
Developmental Paediatrician,
Educational and Clinical
Psychologists, Social Worker
Teachers Aides, Qualified Child Care
Professionals
RIDBC Teleschool
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Started in 2002 as small NSW
program
Received government grant in
2004 to expand to national
program
Delivers services on weekly basis
to families and professionals via
high definition two-way
videoconference technology,
Increased access to early
intervention for regional and
remote families
Focused on developing
methodology of telepractice from
2007 – 2011
Received government funding in
2012 to upgrade technology
infrastructure and expand service
provision
Telepractice
A methodology for remotely delivering a service to a client in a
separate location via telecommunications/videoconferencing
Synchronous components:
– Videoconference sessions
– Telephone contacts
– Parent education sessions
eg Hanen
– Residential visits
eg, intensive support,
connecting to other families
Asynchronous components:
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Educational packages
email
Ipad/iphone apps
RIDBC and Me
website/blogs/forums
Training protocol
TRAINING MODULES
TRAINING METHODS
Module 1:
Basic technical training
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Module 2:
Telepractice procedures
Module 3:
Telepractice pedagogy
Module 4:
Advanced technical skills
Lecture
Printed materials
Demonstration
Practical activities
Observation of live and
recorded sessions
• Supervised sessions
• Group discussion
Blended service
• All the successes of Teleschool model applied to in-person sessions
• All the successes of a traditional in-person model applied to Telepractice
In-person sessions
Telepractice sessions
Blended
service
Asynchronous learning
opportunities
Audiological
management/ CI
services
Aims to provide families with the best of both worlds while increasing
access to regular, high quality early intervention
RIDBC Hunter
One of 5 dedicated RIDBC Early
Intervention Sites
Located in the NSW Lower Hunter Valley
area
Currently services 40 children
aged 0-5
Accessed by many families living in the
wider Hunter Valley area
Staffing
RIDBC Hunter employs:
5 Teachers of the Deaf
2 Teachers of Vision impairment
1 speech pathologist
Service delivery
challenges
• Attendance – travel, sickness,
additional disabilities, weather
• Distance
• Scheduling of appointments/
availability
• Siblings/carers
Staff experience
• 5 Teachers of the Deaf
• 2 Teachers of VI
• 1 Speech pathologist
Combined years of service at
RIDBC Hunter =
91 years
Initial staff survey results
• 8 staff had never used videoconferencing or web based technology
to deliver services to families
• 2 staff had never used v/c or web based technology before
• All 9 believed that we should be using technology to connect with
families
Module 1 Basic Technical Training
Module 1 Topics:
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Types of technology
Uses of technology
Technical basics
Equipment operation
Module 1 Case Study
RIDBC Hunter staff received:
• 2 hour initial group training
(lecture, printed materials)
• 2x 1 hour follow up sessions,
facilitated by technology
consultant (demonstration,
printed materials)
• 4 independent training sessions
(practical activities)
Module 2 Telepractice procedures
Module 2 Topics:
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Client selection
Environmental assessment
Resource selection
Selection of assessments and
interventions
• Cultural and Linguistic variables
Module 2 –
Case study
RIDBC Hunter staff received:
• 2 hour group training (lecture,
printed materials)
• 30 minute environmental
assessment
• 2x multipoint observation
sessions
• Tour of resource library
Module 3 Telepractice Pedagogy
Module 3 Topics:
• Adult learning styles/coaching
strategies
• Roles and responsibilities
within sessions
• Training and use of support
personnel
• Documentation of sessions
• Evaluation
Module 3 Case Study
RIDBC Hunter staff received:
• 2 hour training session
(lecture, printed materials)
• 2x 1 hour simulated VC
sessions
• 2x 1 hour session critiques
Module 4 Advanced Technical Skills
Module 4 Topics:
• Asynchronous tools
• Advanced functionality (multipoint, recording/streaming
• Calibration and maintenance of
telehealth equipment
• Rules and Regulations regarding
telepractice
Module 4 Case study
RIDBC Hunter staff received:
• 2 hour training session (lecture,
printed materials)
• 4x 20min simulated
troubleshooting activities
• 2x 20min practical sessions
integrating technology
• 2x 30 min practical sessions
integrating asynchronous
technology (facilitated by
multimedia staff)
RIDBC Hunter 2014…
- To date, all RIDBC Hunter staff have participated in service delivery
via telepractice
- 5 children have been enrolled in the telepractice (blended service)
program.
- 2 of these are also enrolled in the RIDBC Cochlear Implant program
and participate in remote mapping via videoconference, facilitated by
their consultant.
Contact us
Melissa McCarthy
melissa.mccarthy@ridbc.org.au
Phone +61 02 9872 0240
Michelle Disbery
michelle.disbery@ridbc.org.au
+61 02 9872 0217
Continuing Professional Education
www.ridbc.org.au/renwick/professional-education