Supporting Family Caregivers through Regional Respite Coalitions
By Meghan Baskett, Easter Seals Colorado
Millions of Americans provide unpaid assistance each year to family and friends with disabilities, chronic illness and other special needs. In Colorado, there are 843,000 family caregivers providing over 551 million hours of care annually. As one might expect, this can become significantly taxing on a caregiver on an emotional, financial or even physical level. Respite care provides a temporary but essential break for those family caregivers from the constant attention required by their loved ones with special needs. Respite care reduces stress, strengthens and preserves families and helps individuals remain living at home.
In 2010, Easter Seals Colorado, the Colorado State Unit on Aging, the Colorado Respite Coalition and the Chronic Care Collaborative received a three-year federal grant and formed the Colorado Respite Care Project to improve respite care resources and services across the state. With Convening for Colorado funds, the Colorado Respite Care Project hosted three convenings last year to identify gaps in services and strengthen regional efforts to improve respite options across Colorado. The meetings were held in Denver, Colorado Springs and Grand Junction, and brought together a variety of stakeholders including policymakers, state representatives, respite providers and caregivers. The convenings consisted of a caregiver panel, legislative panel and breakout sessions to identify gaps and develop next steps.
The most significant outcome following the convenings was the formation of three new regional respite coalitions in the state. In each region, leaders volunteered to form the coalitions to develop long-term strategies for increasing respite services and resources to support family caregivers. These coalitions-the Western Slope Respite Coalition, the Northern Colorado Respite Coalition and the Southern Colorado Respite Coalition-are beginning to spread awareness and will help the Colorado Respite Care Project reach untapped resources and communities.
The coalitions are improving stakeholder engagement via their regional support and their autonomy to develop region-specific goals. Through regular meetings and assistance from the Colorado Respite Care Project, the new coalitions aim to increase the number of respite providers in their region, support existing services, develop new opportunities and increase awareness of the need for caregiver support.
During the meetings, the Colorado Respite Care Project provided a “respite toolkit” that included statistics and research, advocacy best practices, resources for families and more. The toolkit will support regional coalition efforts to educate policymakers in their region, develop programs and engage stakeholders.
The convenings were a key step toward building a strong, sustainable respite network across the state and continuing to advocate for the needs of the 843,000 family caregivers in Colorado. For more information about this work, please contact Meghan Baskett or visit www.coloradorespitecoalition.org.
