Emergency contacts, safety and help
Emergency contacts
Presenter:
Hi. I’m Nicole.
It’s important to stay safe and access the help you need quickly. So today, I’ll be talking you through some key emergency contacts listed on the Disability Gateway website.
Title graphic: Emergency Contacts
In the case of an emergency or if someone is in danger always call Triple Zero immediately.
Graphic: (Icon) Call Triple Zero 000
If you have a hearing or speech impairment and there is an emergency, call 106 or make a text emergency call.
Graphic: (Icon) Call 106 Text emergency call
If English is not your first language and you require translation or interpretation in an emergency, call 131 450
Graphic: (Icon) Call 131 450 Translating and Interpreting Service
Call 1800 RESPECT if you are experiencing domestic violence.
Graphic: (Icon) Call 1800 737 732
If you need urgent help with poisons, call the Poisons Information Centre on 131 126.
Graphic: (Icon) Call 131 126
And finally, to access help in an emergency or a disaster situation, please select your specific state for more detailed information and a local response.
Graphic: State Emergency Services
If you have any questions or want to find out more about the supports and services available to you, please contact the Disability Gateway on 1800 643 787.
Key contacts
Disaster support
For information about Local Government Areas which have been declared natural disasters and how to apply for disaster recovery payments:
For information about natural disaster payments and help for people directly affected by bushfires, floods or other natural disasters:
Find disaster recovery services and support in your area:
Resources and toolkits to help you prepare for natural disasters
P-CEP toolkit and workbook to prepare for emergencies
Resources from the Red Cross to help you prepare for disasters
Social stories for children about bushfires and other natural disasters
Staying safe during floods and cyclones
- prepare for, endure and recover from natural disasters like bushfire, cyclone and floods
- learn about cyclone and flood health risks
Safety
1800RESPECT
If you are experiencing, or at risk of, domestic, family or sexual violence please call 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.
The Sunny App is also available to support people with disability recognise violence and abuse, understand their rights and take action to protect their safety.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission
If you have a concern or complaint about the NDIS call 1800 035 544
eSafety Commissioner
Find the latest information to help you manage online safety issues including abuse and violence
WWDA – Our Site
This Women with Disability Australia (WWDA) site has information about what violence against women is and how to get help if you need it
The National Disability Abuse and Neglect Hotline
The National Disability Abuse and Neglect Hotline (The Hotline), is a free, independent and confidential service for dealing with and reporting abuse and neglect of people with disability.
Call the Hotline on 1800 880 052 or visit the Hotline website for more information
If you want help with getting information about disability in other languages:
Multilingual Information Access (MiAccess)
MiAccess can support access to the NDIS for people whose first language is not English
Mental health support
If you are in crisis, anxious or depressed and want to talk with someone:
Blue Knot Foundation
Call 1800 421 468 to speak with a trauma counsellor or for support with applications around national redress
SANE Australia
SANE provides ongoing mental health support for people 18+ with complex mental health, their families and carers, the autistic community and those with intellectual disability seeking mental health support.
Call 1800 187 263 or visit the SANE Australia website to get support
13YARN
13YARN is a national service for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people in crisis. They offer a confidential one-on-one over the phone yarning opportunity and support with a trained Lifeline Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Crisis Supporter for mob who are feeling overwhelmed or having difficulty coping.
Call 13YARN (13 92 76)
National Redress Scheme
The Scheme helps people access redress and can connect them to free confidential Redress Support Services.
Call 1800 737 377 for support.
Visit the National Redress Scheme website for more information
If you are grieving:
If you need urgent mental health care:
If you need emergency respite:
Help with addiction, money or legal issues
If you need legal help:
Emergency contacts, safety and help
 | Sometimes, calling someone is the fastest way to get:
We have included a list of people you can call below. |
 | In an emergency, you can call Triple Zero on 000 You should call Triple Zero if you or someone else is in danger. For more information about Triple Zero, you can visit their website. |
 | If you have a hearing or speech impairment, you can send an emergency text instead of talking to someone. To send an emergency text to Triple Zero, you can call 106 |
 | If you speak a language other than English, you can call Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 131 450 |
Domestic violence
 | If you want help with domestic violence, you can call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732. You can visit the 1800RESPECT website for more information. |
Poisons
 | If you need urgent help with poisons, you can call the Poisons Information Centre on 131 126 |
Safety
 | You might want to talk to someone about the way you are feeling in your:
|
Abuse or neglect
 | Abuse is when someone treats you badly. Neglect is when someone is not helping you the way they are supposed to help you. If you want to report abuse or neglect, you can call the National Disability Abuse and Neglect Hotline on 1800 880 052. |
Violence
 | You can visit the Safety and Violence page of the Our Site website for more information about:
There is also an Easy Read version of the Our Site website. |
Staying safe online
 | You can visit the eSafety Commissioner website if you want information about:
The eSafety Commissioner website also has a page with Easy Read information about how to stay safe online. |
Mental health support
 | You might want to talk to someone about the way you are feeling in your mind – your mental health. |
Anxious or depressed
 | If something makes you anxious, it makes you worried or afraid. When you are depressed, you are sad all the time and there is no sign of the sadness ending. You can talk to someone about being anxious or depressed, such as: If you are aged 5 to 25 years old, you can call Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 If you are a man, you can call Mensline Australia on 1300 789 978 If you are a veteran, you can call Veterans and Families Counselling on 1800 011 046 |
Losing a loved one
 | You might want to talk to someone if you have lost a loved one. You can call Griefline on 1300 845 745 |
Mental health care
 | If you need mental health care, there is an organisation in each state and territory. |
Australian Capital Territory
 | In Australian Capital Territory you can call the Mental Health Triage Service on 1800 629 354 |
New South Wales
| In New South Wales you can call the Mental Health Line on 1800 011 511 |
Northern Territory
| In Northern Territory you can call the Crisis Assessment Telephone Triage Service on 1800 682 288 |
Queensland
| In Queensland you can call the Mental health access line on 1300 642 255 |
South Australia
| In South Australia you can call the Mental Health Triage Service on 13 14 65 |
Tasmania
| In Tasmania you can call the Mental Health Services Helpline on 1800 332 388 |
Victoria
| In Victoria you can find a service near you on the Mental Health Services website at www.health.vic.gov.au/mentalhealthservices |
Western Australia
| In Western Australia you can call the Mental Health Emergency Response Line on 1800 676 822 |
Emergency respite
 | Respite is when someone else takes care of a person so that their carer can have a break. If you are a carer, you can call the Carer Gateway on 1800 422 737 If you are a veteran, you can call the Veteran's Home Care Assessment Agency on 1300 550 450 |
Help with addiction, money or legal issues
 | You might need:
|
Drug or alcohol addiction
 | When you have an addiction, you can't stop doing something even though you want to stop. If you want help with drug or alcohol addiction, you can call DirectLine on 1800 888 236. |
Gambling addiction
| If you want help with a gambling addiction, you can call Gambling Help on 1800 858 858. |
Debt
 | When you have debt, you owe money to someone else. If you need help with debt or money problems, you can call the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007. |
Legal help
 | Legal help could include if you:
If you need legal help, there is an organisation in each state and territory. |
Australian Capital Territory
| In Australian Capital Territory you can call Legal Aid ACT on 1300 654 314 |
New South Wales
| In New South Wales you can call LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529 |
Northern Territory
| In Northern Territory you can call the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission on 1800 019 343 |
Queensland
| In Queensland you can call Legal Aid Queensland on 1300 651 188 |
South Australia
| In South Australia you can call the Legal Services Commission of South Australia on 1300 366 424 |
Tasmania
| In Tasmania you can call Legal Aid Tasmania on 1300 366 611 |
Victoria
| In Victoria you can call Victoria Legal Aid on 1300 792 387 |
Western Australia
| In Western Australia you can call Legal Aid Western Australia on 1300 650 579. |
Government services
 | The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) supports people with disability. If you want help with the NDIS, you can call them on 1800 800 110. |
 | My Aged Care supports older people. You can call My Aged Care on 1800 200 422. |
 | The Department of Veterans’ Affairs supports veterans. We call this department DVA. A veteran is a person who served in the military. If you want help from DVA, you can call them on 1800 838 372. |
 | Medicare is a program that gives all Australians health care at no cost or low cost. If you want help with Medicare, you can call them on 132 011. |
 | Services Australia supports all Australians, including:
Services Australia looks after Centrelink and MyGov. If you want help from Services Australia, you can call them on 132 717. |
 | The Carer Gateway supports families and carers who support another person. You can call the Carer Gateway on 1800 422 737. |
 | Head to Health can help you find information about mental health – for yourself or for someone you care about. You can visit the Head to Health website for more information... |