RESPITE SERVICES: The Experiences and Recommendations of Service Providers and Racially, Ethnically, and Culturally Diverse Family Members

Prepared for ARCH by the Georgetown University National Center for Cultural Competence

Recognizing that many ethnic, racial, and cultural groups face challenges accessing or achieving desired respite outcomes, ARCH collaborated with the Georgetown University National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) to learn more about the experiences of these caregivers and what they would recommend to respite providers to improve services. The NCCC also gathered information from respite service providers to document their efforts in the provision of supports and services to racially, ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse family members and to elicit their suggestions for improvement. This paper examines the results of listening sessions with family caregivers from diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural groups, service providers, and key constituents to help inform improvement within respite programs funded by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).