Respite care program making a difference for N.W.T. foster families

A new program that provides respite care to caregivers of foster families has been credited with helpingto lower their stress during COVID-19 but the programmay not be around post-pandemic.

Tammy Roberts, executive director of the Foster Family Coalition of the Northwest Territories, said her organization formed a team with the N.W.T. government after the pandemic hit to discuss what they could do to better support caregivers of foster families.

It led to funding from the territorial government for a new respite care program in which 60 respite care workers have been hired so far, helping out families across the territory.

"The respite definitely provides caregivers with decreased stress levels and when you have a decreased stress level, you're able to cope with things," said Roberts.

The funding is tied to the pandemic and she doesn't know if it'll be around after that.

"That's always the big looming question for everyone," she said.

She added the coalition she leads is going to do the best it can to provide the best programs and services "so that at the end of the pandemic, hopefully they will continue on because they're being really successful."

The creation of the respite program, and the talks between the coalition and the N.W.T. government that led to it,follow heavy criticism of the government-run foster care system by the coalition in January. After the coalition outlined systemic failures across the system in a 27-page letter, the N.W.T. department of Health and Social Services and the coalition agreed to collaborate to try and fix the system.

Life skillsprogram

Roberts said the team from the coalition and the government also surveyed some families to see if the respite care was providing the support they hoped for.

She said that through that process, the coalition found out about other needs foster families had.

"Over the summer especially, there was nothing for our teens to do other than be at home all the time or places where they shouldn't be. So from that, we did start a teen program that taught life skills," she said, adding it was funded by the federal government.

She said she's heard from many caregivers who say they are grateful for the support and for the increased communication at all levels that has come with it.

"I think what's most important for caregivers is just listening to what they feel they need and then working to support them with that," Robertssaid.