Respite care

Respite care is planned or emergency temporary care provided to caregivers of a child or adult.

Respite programs provide planned short-term and time-limited breaks for families and other unpaid care givers of children with a developmental delay and adults with an intellectual disability in order to support and maintain the primary care giving relationship. Respite also provides a positive experience for the person receiving care. The term "short break" is used in some countries to describe respite care.

Even though many families take great joy in providing care to their loved ones so that they can remain at home, the physical, emotional and financial consequences for the family caregiver can be overwhelming without some support, such as respite. Respite provides a break for the family caregiver, which may prove beneficial to the health of the caregiver. 60% of family caregivers age 19-64 surveyed recently by the Commonwealth Fund reported fair or poor health, one or more chronic conditions, or a disability, compared with only 33% of non caregivers.

Respite has been shown to help sustain family caregiver health and well being, avoid or delay out-of-home placements, and reduce the likelihood of abuse and neglect. An outcome based evaluation pilot study showed that respite may also reduce the likelihood of divorce and help sustain marriages.

Respite care or respite services are also a family support service, and in the US is a long-term services and support (LTSS) as described by the Consortium of Citizens with Disabilities in Washington, DC as of 2013.

Rud Turnbull (Dr. Rutherford H. Turnbull III), himself a father of a young boy and co-director of the Beach Center on Families and Disability, completed one of the first law reviews of respite and family support in the 1990-1991 University of Kansas Law Review titled: "A Policy Analysis of Family Support for Families with Members with Disabilities".

There are many organisations in the UK and Worldwide that help and support with Respite Care.

There are various models for providing respite care.

In-home care is popular for obvious reasons. The temporary caregiver comes to the regular care receiver’s home, and gets to know the care receiver in his or her normal environment. The temporary caregiver learns the family routine, where medicines are stored, and the care receiver is not inconvenienced by transportation and strange environments. In this model, friends, relatives and paid professionals may be used. Depending on the state, Medicaid or Medicare may be used to help cover costs.

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Wikipedia