What is Respite?

Do you look after someone with Parkinson's?

Do you sometimes wish that you could have a short break?

This page provides detailed information for people living with Parkinson's, and their carers, on Carer Respite in Fife. It builds on the carer respite information in the Parkinson's UK website Parkinson's UK  Respite and many other, website pages (See Other Respite Information Sources).

The most important thing for your respite is to ensure that the person with Parkinson's is properly looked after. In this page, respite care facilities are divided into Day Care and Residential Care.

As an unpaid carer, there are good facilities for Carer Respite in Fife. And you may be eligible for funding for your respite,  but you have to apply for it – it will not be available automatically. 

This page outlines the different types of organisations that may be able to help you to find and  fund the respite care that you need. It comes in two parts:

1. A description of, and notes about, the different categories,
2. A data base shows giving details  of  organisations in Fife in each category. 

General Information

There are three  invaluable  sources of information and  help on carer respite in Fife:

Parkinson's UK Scotland.  (Tel.01738 231 270) which has local advisors who will assist carers to explore their respite options.

Fife Health and Social Care Partnership:   (Tel. 03451 551 503).   The Social Work . Fife Council  will assess the needs (including the carer's needs) for the person with Parkinson's. The Breaks from Caring page describes some of the facilities available.

Fife Carers Centre:    (Tel. 01592  205 472).   Support for Unpaid Carers in Fife. The major centre for information and help on third-sector and charity respite facilities in Fife. Their Neurological Carer Support Worker specialises in carers for people with Parkinson's.

Respite Facilities

Day Care

Often, day care for the  person with Parkinson's may be possible with help from other family members, friends or neighbours. If this is not possible, you can use  either 

A, Care at home, where someone comes in to look after the person with Parkinson's  

or

B, Care at a Day Centre. This may involve an assessment of the needs of the person with  Parkinson's.

Care at Home

1.     Fife Council (FHSCP).  Council-supported home care has to be arranged through a Fife Council or NHS social worker.

2.     Charitable organisations.   

3.   Private Agencies,  There are several agencies in Fife offering private home care.

Care at Day Care Centres

1. Council centres. There is a network of council-run day centres across Fife. Council-supported day care has to be arranged through a Fife Council or NHS social worker. , 
2. Private Agencies. Currently we have found  2 private day-care centres in Fife.

Residential Care:

Respite involving residential care may take many forms.  It might  be for supervised care of the person with Parkinson's individually (leaving the carer free to make their own arrangements),  or it might be unsupervised,  accessible accommodation, allowing  the carer, the person with Parkinson's, and perhaps other family or friends, all to take a short break together.

In some schemes, residential respite  care can be available at no cost. Otherwise it can be funded by external funders (see below).  Here are some facilities providing residential or accessible accommodation which may be suitable for people with Parkinson's.

Paying for Respite

Funding for residential respite care in Fife can come from three sources:

1.     Self Funding.  If you can afford to pay for respite care, there are several care homes in Fife which can offer respite residential care

2.     Through Fife Council. In appropriate circumstances, the council will help, or even cover, the cost of respite care.   The help available will generally depend on a needs assessment of the person with Parkinsons – and the assessment can include  respite needs of their carer.  This can open the door to several Government schemes such as Self Directed Support., Time to Live, and  Respitality.

3.     Through a grant. There are a number of charities for respite funding listed in the data base

Practical Matters

Here are some points to consider when you are arranging respite:   

Funding arrangements. 

When arranging the payments for your respite, and for the care of your person with Parkinson's, remember to ask:

a) do you get funding in advance/after submitting invoices (make sure you get, and keep receipts)..
b) Do you need a loan?
c) Will any of your respite arrangements affect your benefits?

Travel: 

Local Travel:
Fife Bus: A free, door-to-door  bus with disabled access run by Fife Council. Only runs on certain days and to specified localities, depending on your home area.

Taxis with disabled access: If ordering taxis, be sure to state any special requirements. 

Long-Distance Travel:
Get assistance (air, train, taxi). Not only helps with airport/station transport, but also smoothes the path through security, passport control etc.  Consider whether both person with Parkinson's and the carer should order assistance (some airport workers walk very fast!).

Further Help

Parkinson's UK can help with advice and help you fill out forms.

Our Parkinson's Local Advisor is Hollie Nelson and she can be contacted at [email protected]

or call 0808 800 0303

Please note that this page is only making suggestions, not recommendations. We cannot accept any responsibility for events which might arise from information or errors in this document.