Creative Care

Together for better care for chronically ill children

Together for better care for chronically ill children. © Mateo Wastrak, Mediateo - Innovation Camp „Creative Care“ from Kompetenzzentrums Kultur- und Kreativwirtschaft des Bundes

More than 14.3 million children under the age of 18 live in Germany.* Around 15% of these children have a chronic illness: almost 2.3 million. This figure illustrates how great the daily challenges are for the many families and institutions (in the healthcare system).

The day-to-day handling of care offers the greatest potential for improvement - both digital and analog. The Social Pediatric Center (SPC) at the University Medical Center Freiburg helps affected families with the complex tasks involved: it provides assistance and support, points the way through the labyrinth of the healthcare system, shortens long waiting times and finds ways out of the maze of bureaucracy.

However, the scarce resources at the SPC also make it difficult for everyone involved to provide optimal support. The federal government's Competence Center for Cultural and Creative Industries invited people to solve these problems. At the Innovation Camp 2024 “Creative Care”, the interdisciplinary team had one goal in mind: to develop new ideas and concrete solutions in a design sprint over 2.5 days.

"We couldn't draw a general mind map or an organization chart because the system is too complex and has too many interconnections."

Social Pedagogue at the SPZ Freiburg

Understanding systemic challenges

The intensive exchange with employees and those affected by the healthcare system revealed fundamental challenges. Tasks that go beyond individual symptoms must be recognized and addressed. The following points in particular emerged from the discussion:

  • The complexity of the system overwhelms even experts: Processes are opaque and difficult to understand

  • Even doctors and administrators don't know all the paths to take

  • Problems require holistic solutions

  • Isolated considerations often lead to subsequent problems

  • Example: Families in waiting loops often visit other doctors, which leads to unnecessary treatments and additional costs that do not contribute to healing and improving quality of life

  • Frequent comorbidity makes access to services more difficult

  • There is a lack of “signposts” that help those affected to identify the right services and payers for multiple illnesses

  • Lack of soft skills, such as empathy

  • Barrier-free communication: doctors' letters, clinic websites and other means of communication use technical language or “Bureaucratic German”, which makes understanding more difficult.

“If my son is not allowed to go to Kindergarden and two to three years go by, then he will miss this time in his development, I won't be able to go to work and the costs will become increasingly burdensome.”

Affected mother

Conclusion: Actively (co-)shaping digital transformation in the healthcare sector

The results of the Innovation Camp clearly showed that many of the solutions developed were digital in nature. At the same time, a significant gap became apparent - the healthcare sector often lacks the resources to implement digital innovations. As a digital agency, we therefore ask ourselves the following questions:

  • How can we support the healthcare system in the digital transformation in the long term and bridge gaps in resources?

  • What opportunities do we have to develop solutions that have a direct impact on the families affected?

  • How can we strategically expand our healthcare knowledge to drive innovation more efficiently?

  • What partnerships and collaborations could help implement sustainable solutions in the right places?

  • The motivation of all those involved is visible. The task now is to transform the momentum into feasible projects.

*As of 2023: https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/1174053/umfrage/minderjaehrige-in-deutschland-nach-altersgruppe