Why Is Respite Care an Important Part of Habilitation?
Habilitation involves ensuring that your family member has a way to learn a variety of different skills necessary for a fulfilling life. But there’s more that habilitation can offer, including respite services for caregivers. Respite is a vital part of the caregiving process, but it’s easy to skip over it or ignore it, especially when things start to feel “too busy.”
Caregivers Need to Recover Physically and Emotionally
It requires a lot of mental, emotional, and physical energy to be a caregiver, particularly when that caregiver isn’t getting much of a break. That doesn’t keep caregivers from caring for the people that they love, it just means that they have to be aware of their reserves in all of those areas. Being able to take respite time means that caregivers get a chance to recover and come back to caregiving ready to keep going.
Respite Can Boost the Caregiver’s Immune System
Stress does a number on the immune system, and caregivers definitely experience more than their fair share of stress. Respite gives caregivers a chance to reduce their stress levels, which is vital for keeping themselves as healthy as possible. Taking respite regularly may be able to help with other issues related to improving immunity, like making healthier eating choices and getting more sleep.
Reduces Stress for Everyone Involved
But it’s not just stressful for the caregiver. There is stress in the entire family and that can keep everyone on edge. Reducing stress for the entire family makes it easier for everyone to cope with the challenges that life presents. It also makes it easier for everyone in the family to seek out opportunities to grow and to enjoy the time they’re spending together.
Respite Helps the Care Recipient, Too
There’s a lot of focus on how respite time helps the caregiver, but there are plenty of benefits for care recipients, too. Being around a variety of other people can help with feelings of isolation that family members with developmental or intellectual disabilities might experience. They can also learn new skills and know that they won’t have any reason to feel as if they’re ignored or neglected while their main caregiver is away.
Respite care is a vital part of caring for someone you love who has intellectual or developmental disabilities. Understanding why it’s vital is helpful when you’re still on the fence about taking respite time as often as you really should.
If you are considering residential habilitation in Carmel, IN, please call the caring staff at RSI Cares. Serving Greater Indianapolis Area. Call for Immediate Info & Assistance: 317-471-0750.
As a practicing Registered Nurse, Etelka was keenly aware of a void in quality patient care that could be provided in the home. She embarked upon a journey to develop a home health care agency that would exceed all expectations and become a trusted partner to physicians and patients.
A Distinguished Career From Nurse to Director of Nursing to President of Home Services Unlimited
Etelka’s distinguished career followed a logical progression to her position as President of Home Services Unlimited. She graduated as a nurse practitioner with a Bachelor of Nursing (RN) in 1972 from Meshgorya University in the Ukraine, close to where she lived with her family. She married her husband Phil in 1973 and decided in 1977 that they would relocate to the United States to be closer to family and to come to this land of opportunity. With an eagerness to continue her budding career, Etelka sat for and passed her Boards in the U.S. in 1979.
A Love and Talent for Working with the Elderly
Etelka began her nursing career in the U.S. at Colonial Crest, now part of Golden Living, where shewasthe In-service Coordinator, the Director of Training and Education and Director of Nursing, a position she occupied for several years.
With a group of partners, she co-founded Adept Corporation, which operated group homes for the mentally challenged. The business was successful and in 1996, Etelka sold her share to return to her roots, caring for the elderly.
In January of 1997, Etelka opened Home Services Unlimited as a fully licensed business to provide home health care. In her quest to learn to do better for her patients, she had already obtained a Masters in Healthcare Administration (MHA) in May of 1990 from the College of St. Francis. As President of Home Services Unlimited, Inc., Etelka guides the trusted, experienced care model Home Services Unlimited uses to continue providing excellent home health care.
Giving Back to the Community of Indianapolis
Volunteering for community services is a high priority for Etelka. Her memberships include the Indiana Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, Executive Women in Health Care and the Indiana Association for Home and Hospice Care, where she is a member of the Board of Directors.
Etelka has also served on the Board of Directors with Hooverwood Home, a highly regarded geriatric facility, since 1997 and as the President for 2005-2006. Through her community work, she has received several awards and accolades, including the Nora McFarland award in 2002, from the Indiana Association of Home and Hospice Care.
Etelka was honored as a “Health Care Hero” by the Indianapolis Business Journal. The issue can be read online here:
http://mags.ibj.com/activemagazine/welcome/html/ibjhch.html.
After clicking on the link, then click on the image of the issue’s front page. After that, you can browse through the issue or click in a box near the top of your internet browser to adjust the page to 17, which is where Etelka’s article appears.
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