“Care” theme week of the Siemens company health insurance company (SBK)

23.03.2011 12:40

Caring relatives and care professionals: Shaping collaboration

How can family and professional carers share care tasks? What do relatives want from the nursing staff? How can care and work be combined and what support do caring relatives receive? These questions will be discussed as part of the “Care” themed weeks that the Siemens company health insurance company (SBK) is organizing in several cities in Germany in collaboration with Springer Medizin over the course of the spring. The care tour in Mülheim an der Ruhr begins on March 30, 2011 under the title “Caring relatives in the area of tension between work and family”. “We want to bring everyone involved together - caring relatives, doctors, nursing staff and employers - to be open about it about care,” reports Roland Engehausen, Head of Private Customers at SBK.

“We need a stronger collaboration between professional nurses and caring relatives,” demands Elimar Brandt, chairman of the steering committee for the Berlin home doctor project. For many years, the theologian was managing director of the Immanuel Diakonie Group, which includes acute and rehabilitation clinics as well as inpatient and outpatient care facilities. “Most caring relatives would do themselves a great favor if they sought help from care professionals sooner,” says Brandt. Conversely, professional nursing staff could also make things easier for themselves by involving relatives more in care planning. Specifically, Brandt suggests: Relatives should also take part in case discussions, and nursing professionals should also take part in self-help groups.

“Most carers overwhelm themselves if they think they can do it alone,” says Brandt. Offers of help, such as hourly preventive care, advice or nursing courses are often not even known. Psychological crises and illness can be the result, as an analysis by the SBK shows: the number of chronic and serious illnesses among caring relatives is far above average.

In order to relieve the burden on caring relatives, the SBK would also like to ask employers to rethink their approach. “Companies – including care companies – must ensure that it is accepted if an employee is absent for a certain period of time to care for parents,” emphasizes Roland Engehausen from SBK. It is not always welcome when a professional appointment is postponed because the father is unwell. “If the child is sick, everyone understands.”

The event “Caring relatives in the area of tension between work and family” will take place in Mülheim an der Ruhr on Wednesday, March 30, 2011, 5-7 p.m. in the Mülheim town hall. Nursing staff and doctors are cordially invited to take part.

Further information: www.sbk.org/pflege

Further dates for the “Care” theme week:

April 28, 2011 Mannheim
May 4, 2011 Augsburg
May 10, 2011 Nuremberg
May 18, 2011 Ravensburg
May 24, 201, Regensburg

Further events are planned in Coburg, Berlin and Munich.