Daily living component activity 6 descriptor C (2 points)
Needs either:
- prompting to be able to dress, undress or determine appropriate circumstances for remaining clothed; or
- prompting or assistance to be able to select appropriate clothing
Who it’s most likely to apply to
Daily living component activity 6 descriptor C’s most likely applied to an individual with mental health and/or cognitive conditions.
Prompting and assistance
Prompting means reminding, encouraging or explaining by another person.
For this descriptor, prompting can mean encouraging an individual to dress at appropriate times, for example, when leaving the home or receiving visitors. This may include a consideration of whether an individual is able to determine what’s appropriate for the environment, such as:
- time of day and
- the weather, and
- cleanliness
Assistance means physical intervention by another person and does not include speech.
Daily living component activity 6 descriptor C may be considered appropriate where one or more of the following applies:
- an individual needs prompting or assistance to choose appropriate clothing for the weather or a social event
- an individual needs prompting to remain clothed
- an individual needs assistance or assistance to be able to pick out clean clothing
If they change clothes frequently because of a health condition
Frequency of changing clothing may be considered where the restriction is caused by a health condition and not based on an individual’s personal preference. For example, it is not necessary for an individual to change their clothes every day.
Example: an individual with anxiety and depression who satisfies daily living component activity 6 descriptor C (i)
Dougal has anxiety and depression and is under the care of a mental health practitioner, whom he sees every 2 weeks.
Supporting information
He has a letter from the mental health practitioner that outlines his lack of motivation.
Application form
In his application for ADP, completed by his mother, he’s noted to need encouragement to change his clothes. It explains that he’ll wear the same clothes every day and go to bed in the same clothes.
His mother describes that he has no motivation to change his clothes and that she has to insist every 3 or 4 days when she goes to his house to clean for him. Only after her insistence does he change his clothes.
As Dougal lacks the motivation to change his clothes, he requires the prompting of another person to perform this activity to an acceptable standard.
Case manager’s decision
The case manager determines that Dougal satisfies daily living component activity 6 descriptor C, because of the need for encouragement by another person to dress and undress reliably.
Example: an individual with Autism Spectrum Disorder, who satisfies daily living component activity 6 descriptor C (ii)
Daniel has Autism Spectrum Disorder and a letter from his support worker, which accompanies his ADP application form, shows that he finds changes to his routine difficult. His application was completed by his father.
The application explains that there are always challenges in the morning, because Daniel will try to pick out clothes to wear but does not understand the differences in weather and is as a result, unable to choose appropriate clothing.
He gives an example that one day Daniel wore shorts and a T-shirt because it was warm outside, but the next day it was raining. As Daniel had enjoyed wearing the shorts and T-shirt, he picked those out again, so his father had to explain why he could not wear those clothes in the rain.
Daniel has difficulties with changes to his routine and lacks the insight to make choices about the clothes that he needs to wear, preferring instead to stick with routine and the type of clothes he’d previously been wearing.
Case manager’s decision
The case manager determines that Daniel satisfies daily living component activity 6 descriptor C, because he needs the prompting of someone else to select appropriate clothing and to perform this activity to an acceptable standard.