The How And How Much Of Respite Care

Now that you already know that respite care is a great way for kinship caregivers to take some much needed breaks from the daily tasks of tending to a loved one, the next question that...

Now that you already know that respite care is a great way for kinship caregivers to take some much needed breaks from the daily tasks of tending to a loved one, the next question that needs to be answered deals with the administration of the care. After all, you may already be sold on the idea of applying for respite care, but wondering how exactly this kind of care is administered might still have you wondering about the feasibility of the approach.

Generally speaking, different forms of respite care are offered for different patient groups. These patient groups are separated by age, illness or disability and in some cases also the extent of medical intervention that may be part of a foreseeable respite care assignment. Whenever possible, respite care is provided in the home to permit the affected individual to be comfortable and have all the items on hand she or he requires to be adequately cared for. For children in particular this is a much appreciated setup in that everything the child requires is within reach of the caregiver and there is little need to take the care outside the home.

For adults, the extent of disabilities and also illnesses dictate whether an in home respite care provider is indeed the best option or if there need to be other avenues. For example, for an elderly patient suffering from dementia, it is often required to take the individual to an adult daycare setting at a nursing home that is equipped to handle and treat patients suffering with this illness. Since dementia requires highly specialized care, this is not usually something that is offered on an in home basis, unless the risks of transporting the patient by far outweigh the benefits. In other cases the use of adult daycare centers provides a welcome opportunity for socialization of the elderly individual who might otherwise become adversely affected by being confined to their home.

In discussing the how and how much of respite care open to you, it bears repeating that many times the payer is the entity which determines just exactly how much care to allot. Eligibility requirements must be met and in some cases the available appointments are curtailed by the paying entity’s willingness to foot a bill. Upon determination of eligibility, as a kinship caregiver you are usually informed about the limitations of care and you may then decide how you want to take advantage of the time you are offered. Keep in mind that any allocated hours you do not use are generally lost and do not accumulate over the time period stated!

In other words, if you are offered 24 hours of respite care per month, do not hold on to them and hope to save up enough over three months for a three day getaway! Instead, if you do not use the 24 hours in month one, they are lost. Even partial hours that are still not used up will be lost if you do not take advantage of them in the time frame allocated to you.

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