Abstract

Grandparents raising their grandchildren (GRGs) are predisposed to depression, anxiety, as well as other mental, emotional and physical health problems. Moreover, GRGs tend to come from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, meaning that attaining the resources necessary for childcare and household maintenance can be difficult. Coupled with a generation gap that makes it difficult for grandparents to adjust to modern culture, education, and technology, GRGs face no easy task. As a result, it is imperative that they are provided with the means necessary to obtain the economic and emotional support they need. The proposed application, Grandcare, is to partner with the Central Massachusetts Agency of Aging (MCAA), assisting in its efforts to provide grandparents the resources they need. Current competitors do not tailor their services to the specific plights that GRG face, though they do a good job at providing some level of support to grandparents in some aspects of their as a GRG, be it economical or emotional. However, by directly linking GRGs to the services of the MCAA, the hope is to increase the effectiveness of institutions in providing support to this population. Functionalities include systems for verifying clients, allowing them to track service availability and schedule appointments, as well as to request services. By expediting the processes that the MCAA engages in to provide for GRGs, the hope is that Grandcare and similar apps shall act as tools that amplify the support infrastructure available to GRGs.

The Problem

As a grandparent, raising a grandchild is no easy task. As of 2017, about 36% of grandparents live with their grandchildren, totaling 2.7 million people. On the other side, at least 1 in 10 children are raised by their grandparents. Grandparents raising grandchildren (GRGs) are susceptible to mental health problems, namely depression and anxiety. Moreover, GRGs are more likely to be impoverished, with the majority of GRGs being single women of color. While both upper-class and lower-class grandparents struggle to raise their grandchildren, the latter faces a much more challenging situation due to their greater lack of resources. Overall, many GRGs are in a position where they struggle to provide sufficient support and resources to their grandchild or grandchildren. Beyond these negative pre-dispositions, there are many other challenges associated with GRGs’ situation. Oftentimes, grandparents take custody of their grandchild due to their own adult child’s inability to raise them. This inability may arise from their child’s death, substance abuse, incarceration, or their maltreatment towards their grandchild(ren), meaning that many GRGs must take in children who have faced a significant amount of trauma. Coupled with this are the sentiments of guilt and unpreparedness felt widely among GRGs as they progress through their journey. The generation gap between the grandchild and grandparent also creates unique challenges for GRGs. Societal culture, norms, institutions, and technology have progressed, and are not in the same state they were when grandparents were raising their own children. Consequently, GRGs must navigate their way through conditions that are highly unfamiliar to them. These dynamics manifest themselves in the form of struggles related to proper discipline and outdated beliefs on health. A notable area where GRGs struggle is with providing their grandchildren with adequate education resources. This is due to the combination of the grandparent’s unfamiliarity with the new landscape of the education system, as well as their inability to easily navigate online school portals.

It is evident that GRGs need aid as they go through their journey. While there exist local programs dedicated to assisting GRGs, they are seldom able to provide adequate support for them. Seeking institutional support likewise yields an insufficient amount of help for GRGs. This is because support systems are designed for traditional family structures (i.e., the nuclear family). Thus, inherently, institutional support cannot properly assist GRGs. Luckily, many GRGs are able to achieve some level of support by forming supportive bonds with those in their community, especially with those in the same situation as them. While informal structures are an important and useful component of support resources for GRGs, the imperative for proper institutional support remains.

If the hardships of GRGs are to be properly alleviated, it is imperative that tools capable of providing economic, emotional, and mental support be developed. Raising one’s grandchild is no easy feat. According to the AARP, in 2018, just under 2 in 5 grandparents have been raising their grandchildren for at least five years, meaning that the journey for GRGs is a long one. Moreover, the United States has an aging population. In 1960, the number of people above the age of 65 was about ten million. Projections predict that this population will jump to over thirty-five million by 2060. It is clear that the population of the United States is aging, suggesting that there shall be an increase in GRGs. GRGs face long, challenging journeys wherein support is often not adequately provided. With this situation poised to become more common, it is only logical and just to provide a solution that aids GRGs.

The Audience

As such, the present proposal aims to develop a mobile application to assist the Central Massachusetts Agency on Aging (CMAA) in their efforts to provide GRGs with adequate resources. The CMAA is an institution dedicated to providing support to elderly individuals in the Commonwealth. Having been commissioned for fifty years, the CMAA is the largest support organization for the aging in New England, serving 61 communities in central Massachusetts. This includes hundreds of families. To aid GRGs, the CMAA has established the Grandparents Raising Grandkids Resource Center program. Having received $1.2 million from Congressman Tim McGovern, this organization provides resources to GRGs in a myriad of areas, ranging from Housing and Shelter to Sports and Recreation.

In a personal interview with the current CEO, Dr. Moses Dickson, a need to expedite and enhance the process of providing services to GRGs was noted. Potential features for a mobile application discussed included GRGs being able to track the location of transportation services and support personnel and to schedule meetings with personnel and request services. The agency is also looking to find a way to digitize the process of authorizing support services for clients. A mobile application that simultaneously allows GRGs to more easily seek economic and emotional support, and aids the agency in the provision of services would appeal to both stakeholders. GRGs, embroiled in the challenges associated with raising their grandchild, would be glad to be afforded the opportunity to seek support. The CMAA, looking for ways to expand their capabilities, would appreciate the ability to more easily provide services to GRGs. While the current scope remains with the CMAA, this idea could present greater prospects for the long term. A mobile application that partners with a local institution to more easily provide support for GRGs would be crucial. If local institutions like the CMAA were to utilize a mobile application, the efficiency of their operations would increase. If services that were difficult to provide currently were to become easily provided through the use of an app, local institutions would have a greater amount of time and resources at their disposal. This energy could be used to expand the capabilities and scope of local agencies. As a result, with efficient processes for support provision and the potential to grow, institutions can better help GRGs receive the economic and emotional support they urgently need. Consequently, the development of an app whose various features assist the CMAA is crucial.

Development Process and MVP Features

Grandcare* was developed using Flutter as the main programming language. A major component of the development process was holding several meetings with the CMAA to discuss their specific needs for the application. Various needs that were identified included the ability for clients to learn about and request services provided by the CMAA, schedule meetings with the CMAA staff, as well as track the location of various CMAA personnel and the soon to be developed CMAA service bus. For the initial development cycle, three major features were implemented: the ability to learn about general CMAA services, the ability to fill out an inquiry form about receiving support from the CMAA, as well as the ability to view MCAA staff availability and schedule appointments via a public calendar and appointment scheduling system.

Following the delineation of these goals, a wireframe of the navigation was established. This consisted of a login screen, followed by a home page through which the inquiry form, service information, as well as the public calendar and appointment scheduling system could be accessed. Persistence storage was implemented in the form of various Firebase databases. Thus far, one database that tracks account credentials of the clients that sign up for the app has been established. The largest challenge with the development process was the embedding of a public calendar via Google Calendar. By extension, it was difficult to implement an appointment-scheduling apparatus. Our group plans to continue working with the CMAA in the development of this app. Future steps include the implementation of some sort of API that can connect service requests made in the application to the CMAA’s pre-existing software for processing requests, as well as the location tracking mechanisms described above.

*please note that the application name may be changed later for marketing purposes.