Care guide for North Rhine-Westphalia
Advice service offered by the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Advice Center for people in need of care and their relatives in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
The online portal www.pflegewegweiser-nrw.de makes it easier for people in need of care and their caregiving relatives to find advice services and self-help groups. The Care Guide NRW is supported by the Consumer Advice Center NRW e.V. The project is funded by the Ministry of Labor, Health, and Social Affairs of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, the state associations of long-term care insurance funds in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the Association of Private Health Insurance Companies (PKV).
Project Goals
In Germany, 4.9 million people are recognized as needing care. Four out of five of these people are cared for at home. This raises many questions: How can care be organized? Who pays for support? What legal issues need to be clarified?
In North Rhine-Westphalia, there are a large number of counseling and support services available. However, many people in need of care and their caregiving relatives lack a compass to guide them to the right point of contact. The Care Guide NRW fulfills this task promptly and free of charge:
- The Care Guide NRW's free hotline provides information on various questions relating to care and refers callers to counseling centers that can help with their individual situation. Another advice hotline provides information on the various options for legally employing foreign domestic and care workers.
- The database can be used to search independently for suitable advice centers or contact offices for care self-help in North Rhine-Westphalia.
- A chatbot can be used to automatically answer simple and short questions.
- It is also possible to make appointments and conduct consultations via video chat via the portal.
In addition to providing advice, the care guide also offers information and enables users to exchange ideas in a forum. The services offered by the NRW care guide are unique in Germany.
Challenges
Development, design, and support of the online portal, including programming of databases for care advice and self-help. The portal, including the above-mentioned integrated databases, essentially has two functions: a front-end area as an information portal for those seeking advice, and a password-protected back-end area as an internal work platform for project staff. A separate backend view was created for editors to manage and search complex database requests. An editorial, digital process between editors and counseling centers ensures that the database is always up to date.
In spring 2022, a redesign of the front end went live. This gives the website an appealing and contemporary layout once again. The portal was implemented using the Drupal 8 distribution “deGov” and has since been updated to Drupal 9.
Conclusion
The care guide is continuously being developed, new communication channels are being tested, and accessibility and user engagement are constantly being optimized. The general service offering of the NRW care guide, which is unique in Germany, serves as a model for networking. It offers added value for citizens by providing information and advice across all levels. The target group gratefully accepts the offer, as confirmed by rapidly increasing access figures and lots of positive feedback.
