NDIA Accountability Project

Animal-assisted therapy benefits for neurodivergent individuals and clients

‹ PrevPage 1 of 2 · Source p. 1Next ›

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024

Submission 135

Submission on the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024

Name: Lucy Balfour Date: 11/07/2024

I am an advocate of many NDIS participants/neurodivergent individuals.

I want to respond to the propose changes to the NDIS Bill.

I am concerned with the proposed changes to this Bill in relation to the suggestion of exclusion of animal-assisted therapy from future NDIS plans and funding.

I am a provider of such therapies, and would like to advocate on behalf of all my clients and participants within the NDIS who access this form of therapy. I am neurodivergent and during my development, I found animals extremely beneficial for emotional regulation, social emotional development, psychosocial support, a sense of belonging to a community, ability to ready body language, and many more benefits.

I own my own business, I am an Occupational Therapist and am AHPRA registered. I took 6-12 months to reach my Equine Assisted Therapy qualification, and have provided support to individuals with my wonderful co-therapists (my horses) for approximately 4 years. I have seen significant development in many of my participants, and many parents, caregivers, guardians and participants themselves have reported ongoing and significant benefits to their mental health, social emotional development and functional capacity.

The issues with passing this bill include loss of income for many practitioners, jobs, business closing for those who specialise in these areas, and lack of accessibility to animal-assisted therapy for those participants who find this incredibly supportive to move towards their goals. Many of the children and adults that I see are those who have tried multiple modalities, and have not found success. They come to me to see if/how the horses will impact them in their everyday lives. Many of my clients have been excluded from other modalities due to their lack of engagement or dysregulation. This would mean that many children, especially those who meet the criteria for Pathological Demand Avoidance or Oppositional Defiance Disorder, will have difficulty accessing supportive therapeutic programs or interventions.

To solve this issue, I propose that animal-assisted therapy is continued to be supported through NDIS funding. However, I completely acknowledge that this is an unregulated

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024

Submission 135

space. Therefore, it may be beneficial to consider continuing to fund those with appropriate allied health, registered professionals, whom have trained in these areas to provide therapeutic funded supports. This may eliminate issues with fraud around other providers whom may not hold the correct or appropriate qualifications to do so.

When measured for mental health factors, many participants have decreased in anxiety and depression factors. Additionally, there’s several studies that have come out regarding the positive effects that Equine Assisted Therapy can have, while some inconclusive, there is conclusive data in many areas:

  • Effects of Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis - PMC (nih.gov)
  • Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies: State-of-the-Art Review - Khalid Bandar Almasloukh, 2022 (sagepub.com)
  • A Focus Group Study of Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapy for Military Veterans Reintegrating Into Civilian Life - M. Christine Highfill, Jessica Cassidy, Kathy Lee, E. Whitney Pollio, Vinay S. Kotamarti, Justin M. O’Brien, Rie Sharky, Katy McDonald, David Pollio, Carol S. North, 2024 (sagepub.com)
  • Horse Therapy Benefits for Autism - Autism Research Institute
  • Autism and Equine-Assisted Interventions: A Systematic Mapping Review - PubMed (nih.gov)
  • The effectiveness of animal-assisted therapy for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review - ScienceDirect

As you can see, while there are some areas that require further research, equine and animal-assisted interventions are generally supportive in creating change in neurodivergent indivduals in areas of cognition, social, mental health and more.

I implore you to please continue funding these incredibly special, important and unique animal-assisted supports and providers. It makes such an impact in so many lives, and provides support that other modalities are not able to.

Many thanks, Lucy Balfour L&P Equine