Keep the current picture clear
How to Share Therapy Recommendations With Support Workers: A Care-Team Action Template
To share a therapy recommendation with support workers, keep the current clinician-authored instructions available, confirm the participant's sharing choices and ask which actions are suitable for each worker's role and training. Record what has been agreed, what still needs clarification and how feedback will reach the clinician. Forwarding a report on its own does not confirm that a worker is ready to put it into practice.
- For:
- NDIS participants, families, allied health professionals, support workers and coordinators arranging a therapy handover
- Includes:
- Practical guide + copyable templates + printable workbook
- Time:
- 8 minute read
Published 22 September 2026 · Updated 22 September 2026
Editorially reviewed 22 September 2026
Written by Callum Cruikshank — Founder of Kinovo
Callum draws on his family's lived experience of coordinating support. These resources offer practical coordination ideas, not clinical, legal or NDIS funding advice. No independent clinical review is claimed.
What does therapy carryover mean in everyday support?
People often use 'therapy carryover' to describe applying agreed strategies from therapy in everyday situations. That might involve a routine at home or participation in a community activity. The important question is not simply whether a strategy appears in a report. It is whether the participant wants that support and the relevant clinician has clarified what is appropriate for the person helping.
A support worker, therapy assistant and treating clinician are different roles. Sending a recommendation to a support worker does not make them a therapist or authorise them to deliver any intervention in the report. Training, supervision, competence and provider arrangements may need to be established before a particular activity can proceed.
The NDIS Commission's working together guide for workers emphasises clear expectations, communication and workers understanding their capabilities. Use the handover to identify questions and preparation needs, rather than expecting a worker to work them out alone.
This article helps organise that conversation. It does not set a therapy program, tell a worker how to deliver a clinical procedure or decide which service can be charged to a plan.
Before sharing a recommendation: a care-team handover checklist
- Confirm what the participant wants help with and whether the recommendation still reflects their current preferences.
- Check the author, date and version of the recommendation. Ask the clinician whether it is current if there is uncertainty.
- Agree which people need which information and how it will be shared. Avoid sending an entire clinical history when a smaller relevant set will do.
- Ask the clinician which parts are appropriate for this worker to assist with and in which everyday situations.
- Confirm any training, demonstration, supervision or competence requirements with the clinician and provider. Identify who will establish readiness.
- Make the original instructions accessible to authorised people. Keep the short action record connected to those instructions.
- Record any limits, stop guidance and contact arrangements provided by the clinician. Ask about gaps rather than inventing instructions.
- Agree what feedback is useful, where it goes and when the recommendation should be reviewed.
If the instructions are unclear, identify the particular action that needs clarification. Seek advice before starting that action; do not guess, independently alter a program or use this article to make a clinical decision. For existing care, follow the current agreed instructions and professional contact arrangements while resolving the question.
For registered providers, the NDIS Practice Standards describe expectations around support planning, relevant collaboration with consent and workers' access to appropriate information. See the core module on provision of supports. An optional worksheet complements the provider's processes; it does not replace them.
Recommendation-to-action record
Keep the current clinician-authored instructions attached or linked. Do not invent or shorten clinical instructions to fit this card.
Participant / preferred name and date: ___
What the participant wants help with, in their words: ___
What they agree can be shared, with whom and why: ___
Clinician name, role and contact: ___
Original recommendation title, date, version and location: ___
Everyday situation this recommendation applies to: ___
Specific action confirmed by the clinician as suitable for this worker: ___
Worker / provider and confirmation they accept this responsibility: ___
Training, demonstration, competence or supervision needed: ___
Who confirms readiness, and when: ___
Unanswered questions / what must wait for clarification: ___
Clinician's limits, stop guidance and contact route: see ___
Feedback requested by the clinician and where to send it: ___
Review date / person responsible for checking the current version: ___
Status: awaiting clarification / preparation needed / confirmed ready / under review
Keep the recommendation and the action summary together
Use the action record as an index to the current instructions. It should answer: What everyday goal does this relate to? Which document is current? Who has agreed to help? What must be clarified first? Where does feedback go? It should not become a second, unofficial therapy plan.
Copying one sentence out of a longer report can remove an important condition or limit. If the team needs a shorter explanation, ask the clinician to provide or confirm one that is suitable for the intended readers. Keep their name and the confirmation date with it. Do not rewrite clinical frequency, intensity, equipment settings or stopping instructions to make them fit the template.
When a recommendation changes, identify the new version and tell the people who rely on it which document is current. Follow the provider's requirements for retaining records while making superseded instructions clearly identifiable. A file upload alone does not establish that every worker has seen or understood the change.
For the broader problem of updates scattered across messages, read the group chat is not the current plan. The same principle applies here: people need a reliable way to find the current information.
A fictional example: clarify the recommendation before assigning it
Jordan wants to participate more comfortably in a community photography group. Their speech pathologist has provided communication recommendations. A new support worker is joining the weekly outing, and Jordan agrees to share the relevant current guidance with that worker and their supervisor.
One paragraph in the report is unclear about how a strategy should apply in a busy group setting. The family does not turn that paragraph into a new instruction. Instead, the team records the question and asks the speech pathologist to explain the appropriate support and any preparation the worker needs.
- Part of the handover
- Participant's priority
- What is recorded
- Jordan wants to join the activity and have time to express their own preferences.
- Part of the handover
- Current source
- What is recorded
- The dated speech pathology recommendation, shared with Jordan's agreement.
- Part of the handover
- Unresolved question
- What is recorded
- How does the identified recommendation apply in the group setting, and what should this worker be prepared to do?
- Part of the handover
- Accepted coordination action
- What is recorded
- The chosen team contact will ask the clinician for clarification and an expected response date.
- Part of the handover
- Worker readiness
- What is recorded
- The provider and clinician need to clarify any training or supervision before the unclear activity is assigned.
- Part of the handover
- Next check-in
- What is recorded
- The team will review the clarification with Jordan and confirm the agreed next action.
| Part of the handover | What is recorded |
|---|---|
| Participant's priority | Jordan wants to join the activity and have time to express their own preferences. |
| Current source | The dated speech pathology recommendation, shared with Jordan's agreement. |
| Unresolved question | How does the identified recommendation apply in the group setting, and what should this worker be prepared to do? |
| Accepted coordination action | The chosen team contact will ask the clinician for clarification and an expected response date. |
| Worker readiness | The provider and clinician need to clarify any training or supervision before the unclear activity is assigned. |
| Next check-in | The team will review the clarification with Jordan and confirm the agreed next action. |
The handover has moved forward even though the team has not invented a clinical answer. The participant's goal, the outstanding question and the person following it up are visible. That is the purpose of the action template.
Ask the clinician to clarify the handover
Use this before an unclear recommendation becomes a worker instruction. Adapt the questions to the actual activity.
Subject: Clarifying how [recommendation] applies during [everyday routine]
Hi [clinician],
With [participant's] agreement, we are organising the handover of [document and date].
They want support with [everyday goal].
The point we need clarified is [specific wording or situation].
Which parts, if any, are appropriate for this support worker to assist with?
What training, demonstration or supervision is required first?
Who should confirm the worker is ready to provide that assistance?
Please confirm any limits, when to stop, and who to contact with concerns.
What observations would be useful, and how often should we send them?
Is this the current version, and when should it be reviewed?
We have marked the unclear action as awaiting clarification.
Could you confirm the next step and an expected response date?
Thank you, [name and role]
Send observations the clinician can use
Agree what information would help the clinician review the recommendation. A worker's factual account can describe the setting, the agreed support they provided, what they directly observed and the participant's own feedback. Keep observations distinct from interpretations about why something happened.
For example, 'Jordan asked to leave after the room became noisier and said they wanted a quieter session next time' gives context and the participant's view. 'The therapy did not work' makes a broader conclusion the observation alone does not establish. Neither a worker nor a family member needs to turn a short feedback note into a clinical assessment.
Avoid adding irrelevant personal details or sending the note to everyone by default. Use the agreed channel and the people who need the information. If the provider requires progress notes or another record, complete that process; the shared care-team summary should not become an accidental substitute.
An urgent concern needs the established urgent contact or emergency pathway. A shared note, email or app notification is not a reliable way to obtain an immediate response. Relevant incident and safeguarding processes still apply.
Factual feedback for the care team
Record relevant observations and the participant's perspective using the agreed channel. This is not a diagnosis, clinical assessment or replacement for required provider records.
Date / time / everyday setting: ___
Person writing this note and role: ___
Current recommendation referenced (title and date): ___
What the participant wanted to do or said about the activity: ___
Agreed support actually provided: ___
What I directly saw or heard: ___
Anything that made this situation different: ___
Participant's response or feedback, in their own words where possible: ___
Question for the clinician / supervisor: ___
Action already taken through the agreed support or incident process, if relevant: ___
Sent to the appropriate person by / on: ___
Response or clarification still needed: ___
Next review or check-in: ___
For urgent concerns, use the existing urgent or emergency pathway; do not wait for a shared note to be read.
Review when the person, worker or recommendation changes
A handover is not complete forever because a document was sent once. Revisit it when a worker changes, the participant's preferences change, a clinician updates the recommendation or the everyday setting raises a question that the existing instructions do not answer.
At the agreed review, ask the participant how the support feels and whether it is helping with what matters to them. Check that the people involved can find the current guidance and know whom to ask. Close actions that are complete, and give new questions an accepted owner and a realistic check-in date.
When a new worker is joining, combine this recommendation-specific record with the new support worker week-one handover. For broader goals, the goal action plan linked below helps distinguish the outcome the participant wants from the small steps the team has agreed.
Kinovo can help a care team connect the relevant document, clarification task and subsequent update in one shared workspace. Use visibility deliberately and keep the original professional instructions available to the people who need them. Kinovo does not validate a therapy recommendation or replace clinical supervision.
Official guidance used in this article
Checked 22 September 2026. This article and its workbook offer a coordination method, not a clinical protocol or a claim of independent clinical review.
FAQ
Should I send the whole therapy report to every support worker?
Decide with the participant who needs which information and for what purpose. The worker needs access to the current instructions relevant to their role, but that does not automatically mean everyone needs the full clinical history. Ask the clinician or provider to clarify what is required.
Can a support worker carry out a therapist's recommendation?
It depends on the activity, the worker's role and competence, the participant's agreement and any required training, supervision or provider arrangements. Ask the relevant clinician and provider to confirm suitability and readiness. Forwarding the recommendation is not authorisation by itself.
Is a support worker the same as a therapy assistant?
No. These are different roles and should not be treated as interchangeable because someone has received a therapy report. Clarify responsibilities, preparation and supervision with the clinician and provider. This template does not establish a service type or its funding arrangements.
What if two versions of a recommendation are circulating?
Ask the clinician which version is current and record the answer and date. Make the current version clearly identifiable for the authorised team, while retaining records as required. Ask the clinician about any conflicting instructions before relying on a summary.
What should workers report back to the clinician?
Agree the useful observations in advance. Record the relevant situation, support actually provided, what was directly seen or heard and the participant's feedback. Keep interpretation separate from observation and use the agreed communication channel. Urgent concerns need the established urgent pathway.
Disclaimer
General coordination information only, not clinical, legal or NDIS funding advice. These optional worksheets are not NDIA forms and do not replace professional instructions, required provider records or agreed urgent and emergency channels. Examples are fictional. Check current official guidance for your circumstances.