Delaware Family Voices provides information to families of children with special health care needs. We are parents just like you who are raising our own children with special healthcare needs. Delaware Family Voices also supports our families and the professionals who serve our families by offering workshops and training sessions.
Delaware Family Voices is currently working on a project to assess the unmet needs of families of children with chronic health conditions in Delaware. Our goal is to identify resources for these families, and to increase the number and availability of community organizations and systems to better serve these families. To fulfill our work under this grant, we have created the Parent Partners Program.
Who Are Parent Partners?
Parent Partners are the parents of a child or youth with one of the following medical conditions:
– Any type of diabetes
– A chronic respiratory condition
– A chronic cardiac condition
The child may have additional co-existing conditions, but we are initially focusing on these three conditions as representative of all chronic conditions.
What Does A Parent Partner Do?
A Parent Partner will have several responsibilities, including:
Complete the training program to become a Support Parent in the Parent To Parent program. More details about the program are found below and at the Parent To Parent USA website.
Distribute materials about the program to medical offices and other places where families of children with chronic medical conditions are likely to be.
Support the work of the Parent to Parent Coordinator by promoting the Parent to Parent program and training for Parent to Parent volunteers.
Help collect information from other families about the unmet needs of their children with chronic health conditions.
Help identify the availability of resources for families.
Provide recommendations to service providers, policy makers, and others on strategies to address these unmet needs.
Parent Partners who have full participation in the Parent To Parent program may receive a stipend of up to $250 plus travel expenses. Parent Partners who participate at a lower level may receive reimbursement for travel expenses.
How Can You Help?
By becoming a Parent Partner! We would love to have you join us as a Parent Partner as we implement this important project.
Delaware Family Voices is in need of Parent Partners to represent all three Delaware counties. If you are interested, and would like to learn more about either the Parent Partner program or Parent To Parent, please contact Ann Phillips, Executive Director of Delaware Family Voices at (302) 221- 5360.
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What is The Parent To Parent Program?
Delaware Family Voices hosts the Delaware chapter of the Parent to Parent USA national program, which is dedicated to supporting families of children who have a special health care need, disability, or mental health issue. Through the use of one-to-one “matches,” the program brings together experienced Support Parents and parents of newly diagnosed children (Referred Parents). Support Parents provide support and guidance to the Referred Parents as they navigating their way through their child’s diagnosis and treatment plan.
Support Parents and Referred Parents are matched as closely as possible by the child’s diagnosis and other factors to ensure the best possible advise and help are provided to the Referred Parent. A Support Parent’s goal is to help a Referred Parent with adjusting to the new diagnosis and the family’s “new normal.” Support Parents provide a listening ear and emotional support as well as a means of locating relevant resources in a way that only a parent who “has been there” can provide. For additional information about the Parent To Parent program, please refer to the Parent To Parent website.
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Delaware Family Voices is a 501 C3 Non-profit organization. Consider donating to our organization via United Way #12691.
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Images from Parent To Parent USA.