"Therapeutic Camps as Respite Care Providers" Article Critique

Critique of “Therapeutic Camps as Respite Care Providers”

            In the 2011 Therapeutic Recreation Journal, I found an interesting article discussing the potential benefits of therapeutic camps on family life and decided to delve deeper into the research behind it. As a result of this study, both the therapeutic recreation field and families of those with disabilities can be positively impacted. In this paper, I explore these possible implications as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the research design.
Summary

            Much research has been done in the past decade regarding the effectiveness of therapeutic recreation camps on the behavior and social growth of participants. These camps are designed with adaptive equipment and other needed additions to enable those with various disabilities to participate in traditional camp activities. The research presented in this article, however, discussed how overnight therapeutic recreation camps can also have an impact on the family of the child with a disability. The added stresses involved with caring for a child who has a chronic illness or disability can take their toll on various aspects of family life. As McLellan and Cohen (2007) mentioned in their research, this impact includes “deficits in cohesion, adaptability, parent-child interactions, family conflict, and problem solving skills” (as quoted by Shelton & Witt, 2011, p. 19). Therapeutic camps can allow the family to have a respite, or rest period, from their stressful daily routine.

            The data in this research was collected by interviewing parents of children who attended Camp Life in Texas. The participants were nine parents whose children had previously attended the camp and the interviews were conducted either two or seven months after the child attended the camp. The interviews focused on whether the parents felt that they had experienced respite as a result of their child’s participation in the camp. Parents mentioned such benefits as being able to spend time with their other children, each other, and friends as well as being able to catch up on work or household activities (Shelton & Witt, 2011). Benefits were also experienced after the child returned, as the parents had a fresh start on interacting with and caring for their child.

Many parents also noted that there were aspects to their levels of respite that were directly influenced by the camp’s organization. If the parents felt that their child was not completely safe or that the child was attending the camp for babysitting and not for their own good, the chances for respite would have been lessened due to of feelings of worry or guilt (Shelton & Witt, 2011). As the parents interviewed were experienced with the camp and already knew that their child would be safe and learning useful skills, the respite experienced during their child’s stay was maximized.

Strengths

            Many precautions were taken during the research to ensure that the study went smoothly and that the results were, for the most part, dependable. To eliminate any fear that participation or refusal of participation would affect the child’s eligibility to participate in the camp in the future, participants were assured that the lead researcher had no affiliation with Camp Life. Ethical research practices were also followed by obtaining informed consent prior to each of the interviews and utilizing the practice of anonymity by giving the participants pseudonyms. In addition to these strengths, the population that was asked to participate did not discriminate in regard to age, type of disability, or how many times the child had previously attended the camp.

Weaknesses

            Despite the precautions taken, there are some concerns in the research method used that might influence the validity of the results obtained. One of the main weaknesses of this study was that the parents interviewed in the study had children who had participated in the camp previously. This leads to a bias because these parents had had a positive experience with the program, as they were willing to enroll their child an additional time. Those parents who had a negative experience the first time that their child participated in this particular camp experience were neglected.

            In addition, the lead researcher who conducted the interviews likely had some bias as well. He was a former camp director and, as such, may have had a preconceived notion of what the experienced results from the experience should have been. This could have negatively impacted the study because he may have inadvertently asked leading questions of the participants. As interviews were the only method used to obtain results, this bias could have been very damaging to the end results.  

Implications

            This study can have a great impact on the therapeutic recreation field. One reason for this is that therapeutic recreation camps can increase the feeling of respite for their clients by increasing the feeling of participant safety as well as ensuring that participants are learning skills that can improve their lives. As one concern in the healthcare field is the stress that caretakers of children with disabilities handle every day, this study can also have a special interest for healthcare providers and insurance companies. Increased incidences of positive correlation between respite experiences and therapeutic recreation summer camp programs could lead to an increase in the demand and funding for similar respite services.

Personal Reaction

            This article was very interesting to me because I love anything to do with camping and I enjoy working with children. I have looked into working in summer camps for special needs children because of the positive impact that these camps have for the children who attend them. Being out in nature and among peers benefits everyone, and it is particularly interesting to see how such an experience can affect those with disabilities. However, I have never thought about how these programs can also positively impact home life and the family of the participant. This research has made me even more excited about the benefits that therapeutic recreation camps have to offer.

Conclusion

            Therapeutic recreation camps offer not only positive benefits to the participants such as increased understanding of social behaviors, but they also improve the quality of life of caregivers and family members of children with disabilities. This is possible because these camps allow family members a chance to recharge their batteries so that they are refreshed when they again take on the responsibility of being the child’s caretakers. While there are many aspects of this research that could use improvement, this study revealed a promising correlation between therapeutic recreation camps and the improvement of home life that can be utilized to drive further research on this topic.

References

Shelton, Kyle J., & Witt, Peter A. (2011). Therapeutic camps as respite care providers: Benefits for families of children with disabilities. Therapeutic Recreation Journal. 45(1), 17-31.