The Role of a Care Coordinator with Marc Furina

The Role of a Care Coordinator

We chat with our Care Coordinator Marc Furina on what a Care Coordinator does.

In the field of support work and mentoring, the role of a Care Coordinator is central to ensuring that individuals receive the right level of care, guidance and empowerment to achieve their personal goals. We chat with our Care Coordinator Marc Furina who brings structure and continuity to what can often be a complex network of care needs.

Tell us about yourself?

“I have been in the support work industry for 4 years and enjoy supporting others in finding and gaining opportunities in different areas of their life. Outside of work I enjoy sports, particularly footy, as well as looking deeper into life and political landscapes.”

What does Resilient Health Group mean to you?

“Resilient Health Group, largely through our Director Pete (Peter Terminello), has afforded and allowed me the opportunity to learn and develop skills and knowledge in different aspects of my personal and professional self, that I otherwise may not have realised, so quickly as well.”

What is a Care Coordinator?

“A care coordinator facilitates supports for clients, in this case NDIS participants, by connecting them with appropriate supports, in my case largely through our support workers.”

What do Care Coordinators do?

“Care Coordination includes organising, adjusting and improving the quality of supports through arranging and supervising supports, to allow them to occur to the necessary and desired level of the participants, ultimately helping NDIS participants move closer to their goals whether that be social, physical, cognitively or other.”

What are the most important responsibilities of a care coordinator in your opinion?

“To display care and empathy for the participants, helping them feel understood and in control of their supports as much as possible, whilst keeping them informed on internal and external ongoings that may otherwise impact any of that.”

Can you describe your experience in coordinating services for clients with diverse needs?

“Coordinating supports, whilst sometimes difficult to fulfill the needs and desires of diverse and multiple clients at once, is a rewarding experience as it alleviates the stress from the participant, whilst steps are still being put in place to better support them to ultimately reach their goals.”

How do you prioritise safety and ensure client well-being?

“By providing open and honest dialogue before, during and after supports, with both participants and support workers e.g. participant rights and preferences.”

“This provides an opportunity for participants and support workers to be prepared and understanding of any obstacles or challenges that may appear, and aware of what may/may not be suitable in different circumstances.”

How do you handle conflicts or disagreements with clients or their family members?

“Initially, by providing avenues to express their concerns, whether that be verbally, written or formally through appropriate feedback and complaint processes,”

“Allowing participants or guardians/family members to voice their concerns and feel heard, whilst knowing that their supports and preferences are the greatest priority, best allows conflicts to be handled appropriately and necessarily.”

Describe a time you faced a challenging situation with a client or care team and how you resolved it?

“A recent issue encountered includes an incident with a client who displayed heightened behaviours towards a support worker. After the issue was resolved in the immediate term, challenges arose regarding how to best approach this issue to avoid similar occurring again,”

“Navigating NDIS guidelines such as avoiding restrictive practices whilst prioritising safety for both participants and support workers, at the same time as trying to satisfy the requests of different stakeholders of the clients, particularly guardians, can be quite challenging at times, as was in this case.”

Can you describe a time you had to advocate for a client to receive essential services or resources?

“Part of the difficulty of coordinating supports can be around what participants have accessible to them in their NDIS plans. This can include appropriate funds for their needs. Advocating for participants to receive appropriate funds, not just in whole figures but in allocation to appropriate areas, can be important as this may be overwhelming or difficult for the participant themselves,”

“Conversing with different stakeholders, particularly support coordinators as well as advocating for additional supports even outside of support work itself e.g. therapies, is important, as supports involving therapeutical supports in tandem with one-on-one support work services is usually best practice in allowing participants to achieve their goals.”

How do you manage multiple tasks and deadlines effectively?

“I work best when separating my tasks into short-, medium- and longer-term tasks, allowing me to decipher what needs to be done with urgency, what can gradually or later be attended to,”

“This allows immediate needs of participants, support workers or other, to be addressed as quickly and effectively as possible, as is needed in an industry where there is a reliance on supports as well as quite frequent sudden and unexpected changes,”

“This also allows back-end and medium-term tasks to be attended to within reason, ensuring they are not missed and are still completed to a high standard.”

What are some skills you are hoping to develop further in your career?

“I’d like to continue to develop my leadership skills, amongst people within my supervision as well as those who may not necessarily have a need to report to me or seek my direction,”

“I’d also like to continue to learn about areas outside of my current scope of practice, in order to bring in perspectives and skills/knowledge that may be able to be integrated into some of the ongoings of the industry and fields within NDIS and supports services.”

If you are looking for a Support Worker/Mentor, fill out the application form here: Support Work Application — Resilient Health Group