NDIS funding access in spotlight at inquest into death of 'emaciated' woman

A coronial inquest has heard that a woman with an intellectual disability who died in 2022 never accessed the $75,000 in National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) support she was entitled to. The inquest into the death of 50-year-old Nancy White will explore how the NDIS can improve its systems to make it more accessible to those who have been granted funding.

Background to the inquest

The inquest heard that Ms White had an intellectual disability, limited mobility and minimal verbal communication. She weighed just 40 kilograms at the time of her death and was described as "emaciated". The post-mortem examination concluded the cause of death was acute peritonitis caused by a traumatic bowel perforation.

Counsel assisting Laura Crase told the court that Ms White had previously been hospitalised in 2021 with septic shock and intubated for two weeks in the intensive care unit. During the admission, a social worker at the hospital applied for NDIS funding on Ms White's behalf, which was approved shortly after.

"At the time of her death, Ms White was eligible to access $75,000 in NDIS funding to support her to live in the community. However, she never accessed any of that funding," Ms Crase said.

Ms White's brother Norman White explained that he did not take the steps necessary to access this funding for Nancy, saying he just "took care of everything himself" and was "not very good at reading".

Evidence from family members

Ms White's niece Rachel Dorsett gave evidence to the inquest, saying she had offered to help her uncle complete the NDIS paperwork. "It just never eventuated," she said.

Ms Dorsett felt that her uncle's reading and writing skills were limited and that he was reluctant to engage with the NDIS. "I think it was all too much and too overwhelming," she said. "[It could have been] because it is a lot of paperwork and it is a lot of reading, and it is a lot of engaging with people you don't know and telling them things … because that doesn't come naturally to everyone. It might've been a little bit of a pride thing."

The inquest is expected to continue into next week. Ms Crase said it would explore ways to safeguard people in Ms White's situation and ensure they, along with carers, got access to NDIS support they had been granted.

The court heard that paramedics had been called to a Reynella home on the morning of September 5, 2022, where they found Ms White "in an emaciated condition". "She was hypothermic, had bruising to her face and abdomen," Ms Crase said. "The paramedics were concerned that her room was cold and there were insufficient blankets on her bed to keep her warm. Her bed linen, pillows and jumper were heavily soiled with vomit."

Ms Crase told the court that Mr White told the paramedics that "he had tried to set up assistance with the NDIS" but that it was "difficult".