Reviewing Respite Services: Some lessons from the literature

Barriers to non-residential respite care for adults with moderate to complex needs: A UK perspective

“…Yet arguably the most significant barrier to availing respite concerns the difficulty of accessing relevant and comprehensive information about available respite services (Cotterill et al, 1997;Redmond and Richardson, 2003;Wilkie and Barr, 2008). Mansell and Wilson (2009) describe a lack of a clear and shared understanding of 'respite' between carers and social care professionals.…”

“…In the right circumstances respite care can also benefit service users, encouraging the development of independence, facilitate a wide range of social opportunities, and offer the chance to become more involved in the community (Wilkie and Barr, 2008;Nankervis et al, 2011). If delivered inappropriately, however, respite can have little effect on relieving carers' stress and burden (Cotterill et al, 1997). Moreover, respite should not be used to sustain placement at home which is inappropriate (McGrotherp et al, 1993).…”

“…'Consumer directed care' -in which service users and carers control their own care budget and make choices about the services they access, including who will deliver the services and when -has arisen as part of the drive to give service users and carers more choice and flexibility in respite (Redmond and Richardson, 2003). However, despite parents' and carers' desire for, and supposed availability of, more flexible and personalised provision (Cotterill et al, 1997;Wilkie and Barr, 2008), service users staying overnight in a residential facility -'residential respite' -remains the most well-known and utilised form of respite in the UK (McConkey et al, 2011b). Given the ever greater survival rates of children born with intellectual impairments, the increasing lifespans of adults with intellectual impairments, and a decline in institutionalisation -not to mention recent austerity cuts to UK public services -an increasing demand is placed on such services (Caples and Sweeney, 2011;Nankervis et al, 2011).…”

“…This can include day-trips, short-breaks, leisure activities, and overnight stays in community settings (Caples and Sweeney, 2011;Cotterill et al, 1997), as well as overnight stays in residential accommodation more traditionally associated with respite. 'Person centred planning' discourses advocate that respite should be tailored to the needs of service users, not the state, and be delivered with a commitment to the family (Petr and Barney, 1991;Truesdale-Kennedy et al, 2006;Wilkie and Barr, 2008;HM Government, 2008;Mansell and Wilson, 2010).…”

“…Respite services exist to alleviate such stress and burden by providing a "temporary relief service" from the demands of continual caregiving (Cotterill et al, 1997;Mac Donald et al, 2007;Upshur, 1983: :13;Wilkie and Barr, 2008).…”