We all want the best for our children, no matter what it takes!

But some parents need more help from others to give their children even the basic quality of life, or even to keep them alive. Yes, you heard it, keeping a child alive is the No.1 priority before thinking about anything else for some parents.

For other parents, it could be ensuring that their children can enjoy the amazing world of communication with their parents or siblings, but whatever the priority is for your child, whether it's dealing with a life-limited condition, managing SEN provisions, trying to get a diagnosis or just getting by day to day with a child with a challenging condition, more than normal amounts of help are required.

This is the help that is beyond the mother, father, siblings, uncles and aunts, grandmas and grandpas - albeit this family support is incredible important, its the support that is required from potential strangers that need to have "a particular set of skills".

Yes, you may find a few tv and movie quotes in some of these newsletters. It's just a little light hearted fun amongst this relentless battle to get through the day sometimes. Feel free to reply with where you think they are from, especially if I get it wrong!

I digress...

Bringing carers into your home to look after your child is both a necessity and an intrusion at the same time. That's how I saw it from day one but 12 years later, they are like family, which they can be if they are 'the right ones' and are trained to the standards that are both required and that you, as a parent, want them to be.

As parents, we may not know straight away, I certainly didn't, why training is needed for these initial strangers, over and above some medical knowledge of how to administer medicines or fill in observation charts. But, some of the key benefits of training are:

• Keeping Your Child Safe And Well: Specific carer training allows your carers to handle emergencies, reduces any risks of accidents, administer medications accurately, and use medical equipment properly, ultimately providing a safer environment for your child.
• Providing High-Quality Care: The more experience and training your carers can received, the more personalized and tailored care they can provide which are specific to your child's needs, which ultimately results in less health challenges or illnesses.
• Communication Skills: The right training helps your carers communicate effectively with your child and you, making sure that any issues are quickly addressed and that care plans are clearly understood and followed. This is crucial to creating a really good, well oiled care team, especially when it comes to handovers and proactive measures to foresee when illness might be on the horizon.
• Keeping Up with Best Practices: Continuous training make sure your carers are up-to-date with the latest care techniques, guidelines, and regulations, which is essential for maintaining the high standard of care you want and your child deserves.

With all of the above benefits from continuous carer training, this results in building trust and confidence in your care team and subsequently allows you more peace of mind and might even lead to being allow to go out for some respite once in a while?!

I know in some cases that might be unheard of but that it the ultimate goal, a level of trust and confidence in a team so you can regenerate, ready for the next curve ball that is thrown your way.