Providing Much-Needed Breaks for Caregivers
Until last year, families with disabled relatives in California had been able hire relatives or neighbors to provide respite care in their homes a few hours a week.
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"A workable respite care program in California will give much needed relief on a daily basis to many family members of people with developmental disabilities." |
This meant the primary caregivers could do errands, see friends, or just have a break. It also gave people with autism, intellectual disabilities or cerebral palsy the support of workers who were familiar and reliable.
Restoring Services Families Count On
But then California put its respite program under the federal Medicaid program. Many families were uncomfortable with the added paper work, legal liability, and payroll requirements. So SEIU members began looking for a new way to help these families.
They reached out to two important leaders in the field: La Clinica de la Raza, an SEIU-organized employer that is the largest community health center in the Bay Area and serves Latino, Asian and other low- income populations; and the Regional Center of the East Bay, which contracts with the state to oversee and fund programs serving people with developmental disabilities.
After facilitating an initiative involving these organizations, SEIU Local 535 provided the research and cost estimates needed to win $100,000 from the state to cover start-up costs. The program is slated to begin later this month, and La Clinica's new respite care work will be performed by members of SEIU.
Tapping the Power of Partnership
In addition to issues such as wages and benefits, SEIU caregivers want to ensure that people with developmental disabilities and their families get the services they need to be an integral part of our communities. They have learned that they can achieve this by joining with employers and community advocates to find innovative solutions.
"This has truly been a great partnership for our community, and the families are going to be the ones who benefit most in the end," said Jim Burton, President of the Regional Center of the East Bay.
"This is one of the most critically important services we can offer," he said. "It can allow family members with developmental disabilities to live and receive care in their own homes."
If this program is successful, SEIU members will join with other employer and community advocates to win funding to make this kind of invaluable service available to even more families in the Bay area.
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