Family support
Family support encompasses a range of services designed to assist families caring for individuals with disabilities, such as children with developmental disabilities, chronic disorders, or terminal illnesses, as well as older adults facing physical or mental impairments. In many cases, family members take on the role of primary caregivers, enabling those with disabilities to remain at home. Family support services can be formal or informal, and may include help from volunteers, community organizations, schools, or specialized agencies.
Common types of support include respite care, which provides caregivers with temporary relief, allowing them to manage their own needs and responsibilities. Other services involve assistive technologies and environmental adaptations that enhance independence and quality of life for individuals with disabilities. Training and education programs for families offer resources and strategies to improve caregiving, while financial assistance may be available to help cover costs not addressed by insurance.
These supportive measures can significantly reduce stress and anxiety for families, fostering stronger relationships and improving overall well-being. Ultimately, family support services play a crucial role in helping families manage caregiving responsibilities and maintain a stable home environment for individuals with disabilities.
Family support
Family support refers to services that help families of individuals with disabilities, including children with development disabilities, chronic disorders, or terminal illnesses and parents or older adults with physical or mental impairments. In many families of individuals with disabilities, family members serve as primary caregivers for disabled individuals so that they may remain at home.
Family support services are designed to assist families in their caregiving roles. These services may be formal or informal, paid or unpaid. Support may come from volunteers including extended family, friends, or neighbors; community centers; schools; or specialized agencies.
Types of Family Support Services
Family support services vary from state to state. Many family support programs receive government funding, but this funding varies widely and can limit the types and amount of services available to families of individuals with disabilities. Following are some common family support services.
Respite Care
The word respite means "a period of rest or relief." Families who provide care for individuals with disabilities sometimes need a break from their caregiving duties to handle other responsibilities. Others may simply need a few hours or even days to relax. Respite care allows caregivers to take a break by providing a substitute caregiver who provides for the needs of the individual with disabilities. Examples of respite care include the following:
- In-Home Respite Care: In-home respite care occurs within the home. An advantage of in-home care is that individuals with disabilities do not have to leave the environment in which they feel most comfortable. In-home respite care may be informal, such as a neighbor who volunteers to help for a few hours, or formal, such as a paid professional from a specialized agency.
- Day Care: Day care centers provide care outside the home. Both child and adult day cares are available for individuals with disabilities. An advantage of day care centers is that they allow individuals to interact and socialize with others in a safe, supportive environment. Disadvantages include arranging transportation to and from the center, less personalized care, and limited hours.
- Residential Respite Care: Residential respite care allows for extended overnight stays (from a few days to a few weeks), such as when primary caregivers go on vacation. Residential respite care facilities can be quite expensive and often are not covered by insurance. However, they allow primary caregivers the peace of mind of knowing their loved one is receiving care in a supervised, professional setting by well-trained, qualified individuals. Many residential respite care facilities also provide emergency respite care.
- Cooperative Respite Care: Cooperative respite care is when families of individuals with disabilities take turns caring for each other. A benefit of this type of care is that these families often have firsthand experience caring for individuals with disabilities and understand some of the struggles associated with providing care.
Assistive Technologies and Environmental Adaptations
Respite care is important, but other family support services help both families of individuals with disabilities and the individuals themselves. Assistive technologies and environmental adaptations can give individuals with disabilities more independence, make them more productive, and improve their overall quality of life. Examples of environmental adaptions include ramps, handrails, automatic doors, and voice-operated lighting. Examples of assistive technologies include navigational devices, wheelchairs, alert systems, computers, hearing aids, and glasses. Assistive technologies and environmental adaptations can help individuals with disabilities at home, at work, and in other places throughout the community.
Family Education and Training
Family education and training programs also help families of individuals with disabilities. A number of advocacy organizations provide information and training to help families identify resources that can help them provide better care for individuals with disabilities. Others offer expert advice on a variety of topics, such as stress management for caretakers. Some provide sibling services for brothers and sisters of children with disabilities. These services include both professional guidance and peer support.
Financial Assistance
Many families of individuals with disabilities may not realize that they can apply for financial assistance. A number of grants and subsidies are available to help families pay for services or products that might not be covered by insurance. For example, a family might apply for financial assistance to help pay for a ramp to make their home wheelchair accessible.
Benefits of Family Support Services
Families of individuals with disabilities often experience higher levels of stress, anxiety, and financial hardship than other families. As a result, these families tend to experience higher rates of divorce and more instances of physical or verbal abuse. Caregivers in these families often suffer from problems such as headaches, digestive issues, insomnia, and depression.
Family support services benefit families of individuals with disabilities in a number of ways. Family support services have been shown to improve spousal relationships and reduce the likelihood of divorce. Reports from caregivers suggest that respite services greatly reduce stress on the whole family and improve bonds among all family members. Respite care programs provide caregivers with relief from their caregiving responsibilities, helping to reduce stress-related health problems. In addition, respite care programs provide care receivers with an opportunity to socialize and interact with others and establish independent relationships with people outside their families.
With assistance from family support services, families are better able to handle caring for individuals with disabilities. As a result, families are more likely to keep individuals with disabilities living in the home and less likely to place them in other settings, such as nursing homes or other institutions.
Bibliography
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