Project Background

Our mission
Our focus
Our key task
Project background
Our Advisory Committee
Our Specialist Review Panels
Our principles in relation to research
What we cannot do

Our mission (top)
To develop a leading edge Home Modification information clearing project designed with the assistance of and accessible to the full range of industry and consumer target groups.

Our focus (top)
The focus will be on developing and disseminating home maintenance and modification knowledge in order to improve outcomes in direct service provision as well as improving outcomes for the general community through capacity building activities.

Our key task (top)
Collection and critical review of relevant national and international literature.

Project background (top)
The Home Modification and Maintenance (HMM) program delivers an important service to support frail older people, people with a disability and their carers to remain at home. Under this program, there are approximately ninety Home Maintenance and Modification service outlets in NSW.

Our Advisory Committee (top)
We currently have a sixteen-member committee representing a wide cross-section of stakeholders, including government, consumers and disability peaks.

Our Advisory Committee meetings are held at the Faculty of Health Sciences (Lidcombe Campus map) at the University of Sydney.

Membership as at February 2007 includes:

Name

Organisation

Anne Reeve

South Coast HMMS

Nicholas Loder

NSW Department of Housing

Annette Keay

Lifetime Care and Support Authority 

Ian Maxwell

Wesley HMMS

Robyn Chapman

Independent Living Centre of NSW

Amelia Starr (Acting)

Disability Council of NSW

Lisa Langley

Council on the Ageing

Claudia Kennedy

NSW Dept of Ageing Disability & Home Care

Colin James

Faculty of Architecture

Christine Regan

N.S.W Council of Social Service

Susan Dinley

Department of Veteran Affairs NSW State Office

Ruth Robinson

Physical Disability Council of NSW

Stacey Sheppard-Smith

NSW Home Modification and Maintenance State Council

Steve Malvern

NSW Statewide Home Modification Service

Sandy Lightfoot Collins

NSW Health Department

Click on HMinfo Administration Materials in the Resource Library to read the minutes of our Advisory Committee meetings.

Our Specialist Review Panels (top)
There are sixteen members on our Specialist Review Panels. Each member participates in the Research, Industry or Consumer Panel depending on their expertise. The Specialist Review Panels provide advice on the Evidence Based Practice Reviews produced by the HMinfo Clearinghouse team. These reviews, located in the Resource Library, include systematic reviews, industry fact sheets and checklists, and consumer fact sheets.

The review process ensures that documents prepared by the HMinfo Clearinghouse team and published on the HMinfo website are technically accurate while maintaining the documents readability and relevance for the target audience.

Specialist panels click here to obtain the electronic form for emailing systematic review feedback.

Members of our Review Panels as at April 2006 include:

Research Panel (top)

Name

Organisation

Desleigh DeJonge

University of Queensland

Karen Roberts

Caulfield General Medical Centre

Lindy Clemson

University of Sydney

Lisel O' Dwyer

Flinders University

Stephen Harfield

University of Technology Sydney

Industry Panel (top)

Name

Organisation

Beverley Garlick

Royal Australian Institute of Architects, NSW

Jean Halcrow

Australian Association of Occupational Therapists

Keith Stevenson

Auburn, Holroyd, Parramatta HMM Service

Peter Meredith

Master Builder's Association, NSW

Sandra Lightfoot-Collins

Macarthur HMMS

Consumer Panel (top)

Name

Organisation

Glen Redmayne

Marrickville Council

Greg Killeen

Spinal Cord Injuries Australia

Janne Bidenko

DeafBlind Association NSW

Irene Truscott

Deafness Forum of Australia

Ross Smith

Central Sydney Regional Public Tenants Association

Jamila Howarth

MS Society Ltd

Sarah Fogg

The Benevolent Society

Sue Egan

Physical Disability Council of Australia

Our principles in relation to research (top)

  • Data collection procedures will be reviewed by a suitably knowledgeable and representative external project Advisory committee
  • Data gathering undertaken by the clearinghouse will be subject to Human Ethics Clearance at the University of Sydney
  • Information collection will not identify individuals or services without prior permission and information about individual schemes will not be passed on to the funding body
  • Publication of research results
What we cannot do (top)
  • We have no powers to investigate complaints about home modification services in NSW - However, information about any such issues may be helpful for us in providing information about best practice.
  • We cannot make or enforce policy - It is the responsibility of the NSW Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care in conjunction with stakeholder bodies such as the NSW Home Modification State Council to develop and monitor policy implementation.
  • We are not a disability rights or advocacy organisation - Our role is to give the Home Modification Service Providers in NSW timely and credible advice which takes account of the broad views of all relevant stakeholders.