A Respite Care Information System for Families with Developmental Delay Children through Mobile Networks
Jyun-Yan Yang · 2009 · Proceedings of the 11th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (Assets '09) · doi:10.1145/1639642.1639706
Summary
This paper presents the design and implementation of a mobile social network-based system for matching families of children with developmental delay (CDD) with respite care volunteers. Developed in collaboration with the Angel Heart Family Social Welfare Foundation in Taiwan, the system addresses the challenge that families with CDD often need assistance with daily tasks, professional consultation, and childcare, but many volunteers do not know who needs their help. The system connects families and volunteers through a mobile platform accessible via PCs or PDAs, enabling automated matching based on location, service feedback, personal skills, and schedules. Twenty-five families with CDD were interviewed through in-depth and focus-group sessions for requirements analysis. The platform supports two types of respite care: childcare assistance and trivial-things assistance (cooking, purchasing, housework). After a service is completed, both parties evaluate the experience through a built-in appraisal system, creating a feedback loop that improves service quality over time. Management features include authentication, authority controls, interface management, reporting, and log analysis.
Key findings
The system was field-tested for half a year, from November 2008 to June 2009, during which 196 service requests were submitted by families and 68 assistance services were successfully matched. Satisfaction surveys conducted by the Angel Heart Family Social Welfare Foundation measured five dimensions: overall satisfaction, professional quality, service attitude, service efficiency, and communications. Average satisfaction scores improved from 3.9 out of 5 in 2008 to 4.84 out of 5 in 2009, demonstrating meaningful quality improvement. The automated matching system outperformed manual matching by considering multiple criteria simultaneously — location, availability, skills, and past feedback — and notifying matched volunteers via email and SMS. The system served hundreds of users including parents with CDD, volunteers, and service managers.
Relevance
While this paper focuses on service infrastructure rather than direct assistive technology, it highlights an often-overlooked dimension of disability support: the systems that connect families with the care services they need. The matching and appraisal approach demonstrated here is a precursor to modern platform-based care coordination tools. For accessibility practitioners, the study underscores that technology solutions for disability extend well beyond the individual user to encompass family support ecosystems. The significant improvement in satisfaction scores suggests that even relatively simple matching and feedback systems can meaningfully improve service quality. The mobile-first approach was forward-thinking for 2009 and anticipated the shift toward smartphone-based service platforms that is now standard in care coordination.
Tags: respite care · developmental delay · mobile technology · social network · caregiver support · service management