Directing your own support: Jeff’s funding-management example
An Example for Managing Your Own Care
By Jeff Shaw · Originally published 20 June 2018
Original article
_Jeff Shaw is the founder of Give a Care, which offers support coordination and assists people with disability manage their own care. Jeff is also _a Committee Member of Brain Injury Matters (BIM), United Brains (UB) and Speak up Bayside. For Jeff’s story, click here. For more information on Give a Care, visit their listing or call 0447277123.
As someone who lives with a disability, Jeff Shaw believes that, for too long, disability service providers have dictated how clients’ funding was spent, with clients suffering as a result. His unique insight not only led him to create Give a Care, but also allows him to appreciate just how much positive change the NDIS is bringing.
In today’s Clickablog, Jeff explores what it was like under the previous system and how the process of managing your own care might look under the NDIS.
The previous system
Jeff Shaw recalls his experience with his first disability support provider: “After suffering a major stroke at the age of 38, I woke up in hospital and was transferred to a nursing home in the Yarra Valley, with no access to my money, car or possessions. It was extremely distressing, and compounded the trauma I was going through.”
“My previous experiences, before the NDIS, all the service providers kind of owned you, partly because they were the only choice and they knew it. All your funding went to the Head Office to pay the staff and board members etc, then we were given what’s left in Support Worker Hours, which wasn’t much of your total funding. Nothing much has changed for years, and that’s why I started Give a Care.”
Jeff explains that prior to the NDIS, funding often went straight to the service providers and they decided how your funding was allocated: “It was a dictatorship. I can laugh about it now but it actually caused people a lot of pain and suffering.”
[Clickability update, October 2026: Choice over support and the method used to manage funding are different questions. Current plan-management guidance explains one arrangement; the historical payment sequence is not a current instruction for every participant.]
The new system
The difference with the NDIS is that the funding now goes directly to you first, and you actually have a choice on who you use as your service provider. This has given people an incredible opportunity to make key decisions in managing their own care.
Jeff believes that, as someone whose life has been significantly impacted by disability, he can understand the real needs of those living with disability.
“I made the decision to manage my own care. A key component of managing my own care is using Moira. Moira are a financial intermediary between state and Commonwealth governments, service providers and clients,” Jeff explains.
So, how does it work?
The process works as such:
The DHHS pays my funding directly to Moira
I send Moira invoices after I have signed and authorised them
My invoices and services are logged as part of my NDIS plan
I file any reimbursements I need
I also claim travel cards which are part of my plan
Moira then pays the invoices, reimburses money to my account and/or sends taxi and petrol or MYKI cards for the travel allowance allocated in my plan
Moira send me a monthly itemised, statement for review.
“It sounds complicated, but once you get the hang of it it’s actually quite simple. Not only that, but you get to take the power back and ensure your funding is being allocated correctly and to its full potential,” Jeff adds.
Clickability editorial update: October 2026
Choose the management arrangement and still ask for your preferences to be followed
Discuss who will process invoices, what records you will receive and how you can question a charge. If using a plan manager, ask how it keeps you informed. Formal self-management involves a different set of tasks; do not assume the article’s title establishes your arrangement.
Provider-choice guidance can help you compare support services. Explain the routines, goals and communication you want. Financial administration should make those choices easier to understand, rather than letting someone else decide your preferences without discussion.
Be clear about which role your organisation plays
Explain whether you deliver support, manage invoices, coordinate services or perform more than one role. Keep agreements and charges understandable. The participant should know who can answer a service question and who handles the payment process.
Use NDIA conflict-of-interest guidance where roles overlap. Do not present using your financial or coordination service as requiring the participant to use your other services. Respect the person’s choices and check the actual funding arrangement before describing how invoices will be paid.
Questions readers ask
Does directing your support mean you formally self-manage funding?
No. Choice and the formal management arrangement are distinct.
Is the historical DHHS payment example a universal current process?
No. Check the person’s actual NDIS funding arrangement. Official guidance
Find plan management that keeps you informed
Describe the help you want with invoices and spending through Clickability. Compare reviewed and rated providers and ask how they support your choices.
