Parents' attendance, participation and engagement in children's developmental rehabilitation services

Abstract

Parent engagement in children’s developmental rehabilitation services is thought to be a fundamental component that is needed for children to reach their potential. This is especially true in the approach known as family-centre services – an approach that positions parents as partners in their child’s services. However, service providers and organizations can have difficulty engaging those parents who often miss their child’s appointments. These families are typically referred to as ‘hard-to-reach’, however this label may ascribe ‘blame’ to parents and lead service providers, researchers and policy makers to overlook the social, organizational, and economic barriers that can limit families’ use of services. Chapters 2-4, explore multiple avenues to contextualize parents’ attendance and engagement in children’s therapy services by applying family centred service tenants, Family Stress Theory, and ethical principles. These chapters lay the foundation for the grounded theory study presented in Chapter 5. This study, conducted with parents of children who use developmental rehabilitation services, describes the conditions that affect parent engagement and presents The Phoenix Theory of Parent Engagement to illustrate how parents attend, participate and engage in their child’s therapy service. These results are presented as a metaphorical journey through children’s developmental rehabilitation services in pursuit of child health and happiness. The implications of this theory are presented as they might be relevant to service providers, organizational leadership, and policy makers. These ideas are offered in an effort to inspire a coordinated effort to improve access and excellence in the provision of developmental rehabilitation services for children and families.