📌5 key takeaways
Comfort and familiarity boost therapy outcomes: Evidence shows that clients learn and retain skills better when therapy is delivered in environments where they feel safe and relaxed—typically their home or community settings.
Real-world practice supports skill generalisation: Practicing goals in the actual settings where they’ll be used (like a supermarket or workplace) makes it easier for clients to apply those skills in daily life, compared to practicing them in a clinic.
Community and home-based therapy is tailored and flexible: Sessions can take place at home, in public spaces, or alternate with clinic visits, depending on what’s most convenient and effective for the client.
Safety is a priority: Risk assessments are conducted before any community or home visit to ensure both client and clinician are safe and comfortable.
Clinics still have value: Clinic-based sessions offer access to more therapy resources and may suit those who prefer a structured setting—but they may be less effective for generalising skills into everyday life.
Convenience + evidence-based practice = better therapy outcomes!
When it comes to where we prefer to do sessions with clients, it all depends on where they feel most comfortable, what is convenient, and what location is best for working towards their specific goals.
Whether therapy is delivered at home, school, in the clinic or community, each location can influence therapy in different ways. Let’s dive into it!
What are community and home-based visits like?
When referring to ‘community-based visits’, this simply means any location that is in the community. This could be going to a supermarket if one of your goals is to do the groceries independently, going to the library for a quiet space to work, or even going to your workplace to target specific work-related goals.
Home-based visits are exactly what they sound like – visits conducted at home! We get to see you in your space, and it means you don’t have to travel anywhere (plus!).
The safety of our clinicians and our clients is of the utmost importance, so we always conduct a risk assessment before visiting any location for the first time. Once all risks are accounted for and everyone feels comfortable and safe, we’re good to get started working towards your goals!
Community-based therapy supports a range of NDIS therapy services and specialised supports as well.
Benefits of home and community based vs. clinic based sessions
Evidence shows delivering therapy in a client’s home or location where they feel most comfortable, or which relates most to their goals, can lead to better outcomes.
That’s because when you feel safe and at ease, your brain has more capacity to take on new learnings.
Plus, when practicing new skills in a location where you might use them independently (like our grocery store example above!), it’s easier for those skills to generalise (which means what we work on together typically transfers more easily to your everyday life!).
Supporting our clients across a range of therapy locations is also part of our neurodiverse-affirming approach to NDIS therapy.
Clinic-based sessions are still beneficial and a great place to work on your goals. Our clinic spaces are bright, clean, and comfortable for both clients and their caregivers. We usually have more resources available to us in clinic (unfortunately we can’t fit everything we’d love to in the back of our cars!), and it might be your personal preference to do sessions in the clinic (it’s totally up to you!).
Where home and community based sessions win out over clinic-based is in the generalisation of goals – we can practice aspects of grocery shopping in the clinic, but to make sure we are achieving your goals, it’s best if we can have a go at the real thing!
The best choice is the one that works for YOU!
When it comes down to deciding where to hold therapy sessions, your clinician will work with you to figure out the best location. Travel time, convenience, comfort, safety, and your specific goals are all things to factor into the decision.
The best part? You are never stuck to one location! We can do home visits one week, community the next, and clinic-based the week after that. We’re a flexible bunch here at Superyou, and will always do our best to accommodate your preferences.
So get in touch through hello@superyou.org.au or give us a call to see how we can help!
