THERAPEUTIC FACILITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT

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Rochelle Callis CRPD Therapeutic Recreation Program Final Report and Recommendations September 8, 2017 page 11 few recreation options for children in the summer or afterschool. This is notable in light of the many choices that exist for children without disabilities. For adults, the circumstances are similar, with few other leisure choices during the day or in the evening. Again, this is remarkably notable when we compare the many leisure choices an adult without disabilities enjoys. As to challenges, almost universally therapeutic recreation managers will note that their greatest need is more funding. Following that are a need for more professional staff, more seasonal staffs, more transportation capacity, staffs with expertise regarding low incidence disabilities, staffs with expertise regarding adults with disabilities, more facility space, more program activity choices, and more program capacity. Another issue is the increasing complexity of disability. The complexity of serving children with autism and Downs Syndrome looks like "TR 101" when compared to serving kids on the autism spectrum who also have type it diabetes, or adults with cognitive impairments who also have cluster seizures. The aging population is another factor too. More persons live in every community and are aged 65 or older than ever before. Another factor is that the incidence of disability for that age group is 45% or more, when compared to 16% for the general population. Typical Therapeutic Recreation Stang Patterns Most therapeutic recreation programs have a CTRS or RTC in a leadership role, if not as the principal manager of the program. That said, it is not uncommon to find some therapeutic recreation programs that are managed by parks and recreation professionals without a credential in therapeutic recreation. These professionals usually have a degree in a related field such as art therapy, special education, or even the occasional behavioral therapist. Most therapeutic recreation programs rely heavily on qualified part-time employees to implement programs. As agencies have adopted strategies to implement the Affordable Care Act, many agencies have lost the staple of their staff: the 30 to 35 hour a week employee who worked without benefits. This has been an important shift. In some communities (see SRACLC in the comparables section), more than half of the programs conducted are planned and conducted by full time professional staff. That is not the case in many communities, where the one or two full time staff manage the therapeutic recreation program, with part-time employees leading programs. This is a quality issue. Whether it is full time professional staff or regularly employed part time staffs, programs have better quality when conducted by full time employees or part-time employees working more hours each week. These employees have more of a commitment to the program. There can be exceptions to the rule discussed above. However, leading programs solely with part-time employees is not the best way to build quality programs. THE W -T GRA DBA RECREATION ACCESSIBILITY CONSULT X ONE SOURCE, INFINITE SOLUTIONS.