This master's thesis explores the problem of caregiver burder of parents od children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the importance of relief and respite from everyday care for the child with ASD. Families of children with ASD are at risk for lower quality of family life and higher levels of stress. Parents of children with ASD report an important need for respite and time away from caring for the child with ASD. This can be acheived through respite care, which can be formal or informal, and provides parents a much needed break from caring. This time can be spent relaxing, spending quality time with one's partner or spouse, taking care of the needs of siblings of the child with ASD or engaging in social, recreational activities or any other type of activities that they can't partake in while caring for the child with ASD. This type of family support has proved to be an efficient way to relieve stress and raise the quality of life of families of children with ASD. The positive effects include a more effective overall family functioning, more cohesion within family relationships, better partner or spouse relationships and better marital quality, better psychological well-being, less depression and anxiety among parents, more opportunities and one-on-one parental time for the siblings and more social interactions and leisure activities for the family. Respite care which is properly organized and takes into account the needs of families, can be an effective protective factor contributing to better functioning of the whole family and can reduce the risk of institutionalization of the child with ASD.
The study included 81 parents of children with ASD, aged between 4 and 18 years. Results of the study show that time spent away from caring for the child with ASD is very important to parents. This need for respite is not affected by the age of the child with ASD nor by the socio-economical status or parents' education. We found that most parents have the ability to take a break from caring once a month at best, more than 30% of parents can take a break only a couple times a year. Most parents report an unmet need for respite. There is also an important correlation between the perceived family quality of life and the perceived need for respite. Parents who perceive their need for respite as unmet, have a lower quality of life. There is also a great need for organized forms of respite care between parents of ASD. Parents expressed a need for in-home respite care and afternoon respite care without overnight stays.
Based on the findings of the present study we propose a model of respite care as a part of the support system for families with children with ASD. This model has been found successful in meeting the needs for respite in other countries. It has proven beneficial for families to partake in respite care provided by volunteering students participating in a student respite provider system for children with ASD.
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