Alayna
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Alayna is in her early 50s and lives with clinical depression and anxiety due to the strain of working with challenging clients for around 10 years. She also has a heart condition and issues with balance and mobility.
Alayna told the Royal Commission she had spent approximately 10 years working as a government employee dealing with ‘high risk’ clients. These included people who had recently been released from prison and required referral to a psychiatrist.
Alayna informed her employer that her work was adversely affecting her mental state and asked for support. But assistance never came. Her employer often ignored her medical certificates, meaning she lost pay when she couldn’t work.
Upon leaving the job, Alayna applied for WorkCover. After many appeals to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Alayna finally received workers’ compensation. Alayna believes she was being monitored during the appeals process.
Alayna has received assistance from Comcare for some things but not others. She finds having to engage with Comcare about her financial support exhausting.
Alayna believes Comcare has harassed her. She described having surveillance technology placed in her home, including automatic camera lights in her bathroom, lights in her bedroom and drones landing on her roof. She is also concerned that USBs containing information about her medical conditions have been stolen from her home.
Alayna feels like a prisoner in her own home and has ‘a deep-down concern’ that she is being monitored. She has moved house, but the problems have continued. Alayna believes her family and friends are also being targeted.
Alayna feels that Comcare is intent on ‘sending [her] insane’. ‘Comcare always argues if … a new condition has superseded the current condition, then your payment with Comcare is no longer valid.’
Alayna has reported the incidents at her home to police and other agencies but little assistance has been provided. She feels that police have not taken her seriously and that emergency services staff have labelled her as ‘psychotic’ without any medical basis.
Alayna does, however, believe that her psychologist and advocate have helped her to regain some independence. She hopes that this, together with her own rehabilitation efforts, will assist her in continuing her university studies. She wants to exit Comcare and do the rehabilitation and study without Comcare’s involvement.
‘I’m not going to be silenced. I’m not going to be bullied anymore. And I won’t stop until my last breath.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.