Although it may seem like caring is a lonely 24/7 responsibility, that is never truly the case. From time to time, we all need to relax. Respite care can help you do just that.
Respite care is an effective way of providing temporary relief from caring duties, enabling carers to rest and look after themselves.
If you’re interested in learning more about how to acquire respite care services, keep reading as we discuss what respite care is and how it may benefit you.
What is Respite Care?
Putting your own needs aside for someone else is one of the most selfless things a person can do. However, throughout your time as a carer, there may be periods when you need a break to help look after yourself.
Respite care provides the opportunity for carers to step away from their daily caring tasks for a short period to rest and recuperate. It operates on a temporary basis and is intended to be as flexible as possible to suit your individual needs.
Respite care can be arranged privately through a paid carer, or it can be funded and provided by your local authority following the completion of a needs assessment.
Generally, respite care is offered in three ways:
In-home Respite Care
In-home or live-in respite care is better intended for less demanding scenarios as carers can visit the individual’s home to continue your caring procedures while you take a break.
Visiting Respite Care
Those that need occasional, temporary periods of respite care may benefit most from visiting respite care. Through this, a carer will visit your home for a few hours to take over for a short duration of time.
Out-of-Home Respite Care
Many care homes offer short-term periods of respite care in which patient’s temporarily move into assisted living environments. This type of respite care is especially useful for patients with slightly higher care requirements as it allows for an increased amount of supervision.
This is a common option when a carer goes on holiday for a week or two.
Who is Respite Care For?
Respite care is primarily intended for individuals who receive private care from one specific person. For example, a grown-up child of an elderly parent.
Private Carers
Looking after a family member can be emotionally and physically draining, and you may find it harder to switch off during afterhours than if you were caring for a non-relation.
Respite care is available to private carers so that they can allow their loved ones to be looked after by a trained caring professional.
Friends and Family
Friends and family can also help with arranging respite care. They can either move into a loved one’s home to take over; or they can invite the person into their own home.
“I can't thank you enough for advising me on the options for care for my husband. You held my hand throughout what was an extremely emotional and difficult time for me and my husband. Your knowledge and the empathy shown by your care advisors was exemplary.”
- Beverley Radcliffe
How My Care My Home Can Help
If you’re finding yourself overwhelmed with care responsibilities, we can help.
From sourcing private respite care for elderly people to arranging care needs and capacity assessments, My Care My Home are very familiar with the entire care process. This allows us to guide you through it from start to finish, offering plenty of useful advice during your time with us.
Those living in Wigan or select locations in South Wales may be able to receive care directly from our team of trusted carers. However, we are also able to service the majority of the UK thanks to our friendly network of external carers.
How it Works
1. The First Consuultation
We get to work as soon as you contact us. When we receive your request, a member of our team will reach out to you and begin your initial consultation. It is here where we begin to discover more about you, what your needs are and those of the individual you care for.
2. Discussion
With our information gathered, our team work tirelessly to shortlist potential services that may benefit you. We also aim to set our objectives at this stage, to help you accomplish anything specific laid out in our introduction.
3. Continued Support
With your services in place, we will keep in touch with you for the duration of your time with us in order to make adjustments to the services you receive. With respite care, we endeavour to maintain the same level of care that you have been providing while you take a well-deserved rest.