Children’s Respite Homes of America (CRHA) is an awareness program of the National Center for Pediatric Palliative Care Homes (NCPPCH) . Our shared mission is to scale, strengthen, and sustain community-based home care models that provide a temporary haven for families with medically fragile children to receive much-needed overnight respite and support.

Children with significant medical complexities often require constant and intense care throughout the day and night, leaving parents and caregivers exhausted with no place or no one to turn to for a break to catchup on sleep. Medical advancements mean that some children with life-limiting conditions are living longer lives which is great, but also means that families will be expected to still provide much of the child’s daily care for even longer.

Historically, the U.S. healthcare system has been primarily designed to support aging adults and those with disabilities, and children were seen as the responsibility of parents. This has resulted in barriers and voids in licensing, regulations, and funding to support appropriate care for medically fragile children and their families.

NCPPCH creates a collaborative national center for shared learnings, understanding current State solutions, and solving gaps in Federal legislation so that more local providers will emerge to serve the needs of our special population.

CRHA, as the public-facing side of NCPPCH, visibly unifies the efforts of grassroots programs to amplify our shared voice and raises awareness about the unmet needs of these children and their families. We are dedicated to building a community of support, providing resources, and advocating for change at local, state, and federal levels.

Our journey began with passionate local leaders seeking and finding each other across the US to share insights and inspiration. These champions informally banded together as the “Like House Coalition”. Yearning for national leadership, they eventually evolved into our organization and efforts today.