WHAT IS RESPITE?
Respite means providing parents or carers with a break from their usual caring roles and duties.
Respite means different things to different people and can take many different forms according to the needs of individual families and according to the services available. For instance:
- Respite can be planned or unplanned or happen in response to a crisis or emergency situation.
- Respite can be regular, happening at a regular time each week or at regular intervals or be arranged only as required at irregular times.
- Respite can last for a few hours, overnight or for several weeks.
- Respite can happen in the families' own homes or in the community.
Types of Respite
In Home Respite
Service provided in the home of the person requiring support by Home and Community Care Services (HACC) including local Councils, nursing services, specialist providers or by private attendant care agencies. In-home respite is usually provided for a few hours but can be arranged overnight or longer.
Centre Based Respite
Services are usually provided usually on a daily basis and aim to provide a social or recreational experience. For instance adult day activity support services, day centres, child care centres and holiday programs can all provide regular planned day respite for carers. Some of these programs often supply transport to and from the centre.
Residential Respite
Overnight or longer stay in facilities including aged care facilities (nursing homes, hostels, special residential services), respite houses (run for people with disability by the Department of Human Services, Yooralla, Scope and other providers)
Recreation and Community Access
Provision of a support worker to enable people with a disability to make friends and/or take part in recreation activities, camps, holidays or group recreation programs.
Alternative Family Care
Some programs provide respite in host carers (often volunteers) own home eg Interchange, foster care, Extended families and family day care.
Brokerage Support
Agencies which have some flexible funds to purchase additional services for carers or the people they care for.
