Sparkle shines a spotlight on coordinated care for children with disabilities
Sparkle is delighted to share that we have recently had two pieces of research published in academic journals, highlighting the impact of our Family Liaison Service and Aneurin Bevan University Health Board’s Care Coordination service.
The evaluation of the Family Liaison Service, which found the accessibility of the service to be key to providing effective, holistic support for families, was published in Tizard Learning Disability Review on 22nd June. The evaluation of Care Coordination found the service increases engagement in healthcare, reduces missed appointments, and empowers families to take control of their child’s care; this was published in Child: Care, Health and Development on 15th August. Both evaluations showed that these services improve outcomes for children, young people and families, and reduce pressure on health and social care professionals – the services being delivered by individuals who are not ‘clinical’ professionals was also found to be a positive aspect.
If you access Sparkle services, you will very likely have been asked at some point to take part in an evaluation by Sparkle’s Research and Development Officer. Not only do these evaluations help us provide the best possible services for your child, and ensure we can secure funding for those services, but by publishing the findings in these journals we are enabling other organisations to learn from and adopt these innovative services for children with disabilities and their families. Already we have been contacted by another health board in Wales interested in delivering similar services in their area, which means our work will help support even more families.
We’re very proud to be able to shine a spotlight on these unique services developed by Sparkle and ABUHB, and the fantastic work happening here in Gwent.
Family Liaison Service paper: What can a Family Liaison Service offer families of children with disabilities and/or developmental difficulties? | Emerald Insight
Care Coordination paper: Care coordination for children with a disability or developmental difficulty: Empowers families and reduces the burden on staff supporting them - Myers - Child: Care, Health and Development - Wiley Online Library
Care Coordination video abstract: https://youtu.be/1SrXlnd035c?feature=shared
If you would like to find out more about Sparkle’s research activities, please visit www.sparkleappeal.org/research or email research@sparkleappeal.org