The Forgotten Households
By: Uoregon Ctn
Tags: Rapid Ec Project, Covid 19, Childrens Mental Health, Early Child Development, Health Data

Possible explanations

Many factors may be contributing to the differences we are seeing in households in which a child has a disability.

Research conducted before COVID-19 found that caregivers of young children with disabilities often feel isolated; the pandemic may be further cutting caregivers off from social networks that understand the complexities of their daily lives.

In addition, the daily stresses of providing care for a child with special needs can be considerable, including assisting with mobility, feeding, and other basic life skills.

The daily stresses of providing care for a child with special needs can be considerable.

Prior to the pandemic, if a child was enrolled in an early childhood special education setting during the day, adults in the child’s household had some time in which the child was not in their direct care — allowing for income-generating activities as well as needed rest and relaxation.

In contrast, during the pandemic, many in-home and community-based early intervention services have diminished. The services that continue to be delivered have shifted to remote delivery, and equity issues in access to those services are likely to exist based on whether households have broadband, computers, and smartphones.

In addition, some disabilities may make it difficult for children to interact virtually with service providers.

Notably, increased time at home caring for a child with a disability may not be all negative.

Parents and other caregivers are more likely to be present when their children accomplish challenging tasks or reach developmental milestones, which is especially meaningful for parents of children with disabilities.

Families also have more time together to deepen their relationships and attachment.

Nevertheless, it appears from our survey data that the net effect of the pandemic on households in which a young child has a disability is negative.

The state of the research

We cannot yet discern from our data what is contributing to the challenges that households of young children are experiencing. It will require greater understanding of the causes of these difficulties before we are able to suggest specific actions to help these households.

The data indicate that this sector of the population clearly needs enhanced support.

However, the data do indicate that this sector of the population clearly needs enhanced support and innovative approaches to service delivery, and that federal and state requirements for services should be monitored.

Because of our ability to launch a new survey every week and include additional questions, we have the opportunity to probe deeper into these issues. Expect to hear back on this topic in future postings.

It is also important to note that childhood disability, as defined in federal law, is an umbrella category that includes individuals with:

[a] physical, developmental, behavioral, or emotional condition and who also require health and related services of a type or amount beyond that required by children generally.

At present, we don’t have data from enough households of young children with a disability to examine whether particular types of disabilities are creating specific types of challenges. However, as our data collection continues, we will be able to focus on this information and will publish what we learn along with policy recommendations.

Stay tuned.