Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore rural/urban differences in service providers’ perceptions of challenges and facilitators to services for children with special health care needs (CSHN) and their families in southeast Georgia. Methodology: A total of 23 individual interviews were conducted with service providers in one rural county in southeast Georgia (N = 12) and in one urban county in north central Georgia (N = 11). Interviews were based on the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs 2009-2010 survey. All interviews were audio recorded, transcribed and coded with the intent of identifying themes and illustrative quotes. Findings: Service providers discussed a variety of challenges to accessing services related to socioeconomic status and the transition out of the school system. Urban and rural service providers’ perceptions were similar overall, with the exception of lack of transportation and access to a variety of services in rural area. Service providers overcome challenges through identifying parents’ needs and limitations and adapting service provision. Some of the facilitators mentioned by both urban and rural service providers are availability of transportation and resources. Practical Implications: The results of this study provide public health practice and policy implications that could guide the pathways of targeted interventions to improve the access and availability of variety of services for CSHCN. Originality/value of paper: This paper represents an in-depth exploration of service provider’s perceptions of challenges and facilitators related to service provision for children with special healthcare needs.
Highlights
According to American Community Survey, disability is characterized by serious difficulty with four basic areas of functioning—hearing, vision, cognition, and ambulation [1]
Since youth make up considerable portion of individuals with disabilities; several studies have explored differences in utilization, accessibility and availability of support services for children with special health care needs (CSHCN) while transitioning to adult services, from parents’, teachers’ and youth perspectives [2]-[5]
The results of this study provide public health practice and policy implications that could guide the pathways of targeted interventions to improve the access and availability of variety of services for CSHCN
Summary
According to American Community Survey, disability is characterized by serious difficulty with four basic areas of functioning—hearing, vision, cognition, and ambulation [1]. A study estimated that in 2011, approximately 2.3 million adolescents of ages 12 to years was affected by one or more types of disability and the overall rate of disability for children < years old increased to 15.6% between 2001 and 2011 [2]. Since youth make up considerable portion of individuals with disabilities; several studies have explored differences in utilization, accessibility and availability of support services for children with special health care needs (CSHCN) while transitioning to adult services, from parents’, teachers’ and youth perspectives [2]-[5]. There is lack in our understanding of the challenges to accessibility, availability and utilization of support services for transitioning CSHCN from service providers’ perspective. The focus of this study is to identify, explore, and compare barriers and facilitators for engaging in support services for youth from service provider’s perspectives in urban and rural Georgia
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