Kaiya and Marisol
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.
Kaiya is in her 30s and has cerebral palsy. She has also been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, generalised anxiety disorder and chronic depression. Marisol is her mum.
‘[Kaiya] had been walking since the age of three,’ Marisol told the Royal Commission, ‘so I had spent [more than 30 years] getting her to the stage of life where she was educated, physically able, very competent and very confident.’
Marisol said when the NDIS was rolled out and Kaiya moved into supported accommodation she ‘weighed 60 kilos’ and ‘ambulated with two walking sticks’. Since then, she has sustained injuries, lost mobility and had a ‘massive weight gain’.
‘What came into play at that time,’ Marisol said, ‘was the NDIS, the NDIA and a deterioration of her health needs by the public health system.’
Nearly a decade ago, Kaiya fell from her electric wheelchair and broke her arm.
‘That was ignored for two weeks in the actual hospital ward, and it was ignored for four months in the rehabilitation section of that hospital,’ Marisol said.
A couple of years ago Kaiya had another fall and broke her arm again.
‘She was taken to hospital, the hospital lasted for two days, and then she was accepted into the rehabilitation section for a further two days, and then discharged with no grounds whatsoever.’
Marisol said the NDIS initially funded rehabilitation. ‘Recently that has been reduced remarkably, by two-thirds. The reason being, it is a public health issue, not an NDIS issue … [but] the public health system says it’s the NDIA's problem.’
‘Look, I get stuck in the middle and nothing gets done,’ said Kaiya.
Kaiya’s service provider told her she would lose other NDIS funding if she tried to access rehabilitation.
‘I was threatened with eviction because I wanted to go to rehab and they said I would lose my housing.’
Since her falls, Kaiya has been unable to get physical therapy. The NDIA expects her support workers to ‘be responsible for everything, such as therapy’. ‘But the point is,’ Kaiya says, ‘they are not trained, plus they don't have enough time to do that.’
‘I want to get out of this situation, because it's affecting my physical and mental health. I can't stand it any longer. I just, I have to get out of here so that I can get a semblance of my life back at least, even though I don't feel like I will be, I'm just existing.’
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.