Respite Care Policy Brief

According to the Administration for Children and Families (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services), a recent policy brief from the Family Strengthening Policy Center titled Strengthening Grandfamilies Through Respite Care examines the benefits of respite care programs for families headed by relative caregivers. These families come to bear when grandmothers, uncles, siblings, or other relatives assume the care of their kin's children when the biological parents are unable to do so.

The policy brief sheds light on the economic and emotional issues affecting these households and recommends various types of respite care to accommodate family circumstances. It also describes the ways in which effective respite care systems strengthen these special families by:

• Enhancing the stability of the household
• Relieving caregivers' stress to build better family relationships
• Enabling caregivers to pursue other supports

The brief includes a list of policy recommendations to improve the availability and accessibility of respite care systems and identifies family-driven practices based on measurable outcomes. Successful respite care programs are also profiled.

A download of this policy brief is available below.

 Download: Strengthening Grandfamilies Through Respite Care