Results of the care needs analysis presented

The city's social services department has completed its current assessment of the nursing stock and needs. It was presented to the city council's social and health committee. Due to the growing population, the proportion of people over the age of 65 in Erlangen will increase significantly in the coming years. The group of over-80s will be particularly affected: the number of people in need of care is forecast to rise by more than ten percent from the current 5,000 to 5,600. The number of people in need of care has already risen from around 3,800 in 2019 to 5,000 today. That is an increase of around a third (Photo: unsplash).

Further contents of the analysis:

• Significant challenges in care provision. The number of people in need of care is increasing in all sectors, while at the same time there are fewer and fewer care professionals and assistants available.
• More and more people in need of care are left to fend for themselves in their own homes without family support, while family caregivers are often overwhelmed. At the same time, rising care costs are increasingly leading to financial overload, especially for people with low pensions.
• Specific needs are increasing, for example for young people in need of care, family caregivers or people with life-long impairments. In addition, the provision of domestic support must be expanded, as the need for help in everyday life often starts earlier than the actual need for care.
• Informal networks such as neighborhood assistance are becoming increasingly important and require professional support.

Meeting challenges: what the city of Erlangen is doing

• A central component is the strengthening of care advice. The Erlangen Care Support Center offers comprehensive advice in cooperation with the district of Middle Franconia and the Dreycedern e. V. association.
• To provide better support for children and young people in need of care, a network was set up in 2023 in cooperation with Erlangen University Hospital and Lebenshilfe.
• The city supports outpatient care services by subsidizing investment costs in order to ensure a needs-based infrastructure.
• In addition, district structures and neighborhood networks are becoming increasingly important. A model project is currently being implemented in Büchenbach Nord with funding from the city through the AWO Social Center and the AWO District Association of Upper and Middle Franconia as the project sponsor in order to establish a neighbourhood support network.
• The social welfare office is also planning another neighborhood project to promote household-related services.

Social welfare officer Dieter Rosner: "Even if we have no direct influence on the legal framework, as a city we take on important advisory, supportive and preventative tasks."

At the same time, he calls for a comprehensive reform of long-term care insurance and more control options for local authorities. "The structures of social long-term care insurance date back to a time with different demographic conditions. A fundamental reform is necessary to ensure that care is financed in a way that is fair to all generations."

He added that professional associations and experts have already put forward proposals for sustainable financing models, integrated care structures and better qualification and retention of nursing staff. It is also important that municipal management responsibility is strengthened and financially secured. Rosner: "This is the only way we can support forward-looking care projects in the long term."

Here: Determination of the nursing stock and requirements for the City Council's Social and Health Committee on February 20, 2025