Children in need of care present parents with major challenges.
A level of care can help make everyday life easier.
Frankfurt – Although care is usually associated with older people, there are tens of thousands of children in Germany who need care.
In North Rhine-Westphalia alone, there are 50,000 children under the age of 15 who are almost exclusively looked after at home, according to the NRW consumer advice center.
It is often difficult for parents to manage the balancing act between everyday care, family and work.
In order to receive support from nursing care insurance, it is advisable to apply for a nursing care level.
This has several advantages for both the parents and the child.
Children in need of care are a challenge – information about support is often difficult to find
Caring for a child in need of care often presents parents with major challenges.
“This pushes the affected mothers and fathers to their limits every day – for decades,” explains Barbara Schmitz, head of the North Rhine-Westphalia Care Guide project at the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Center.
Parents who want to find out more about the care of their children are often faced with the problem that there is no central point of contact.
“In contrast to senior care, there is no local advice center for these people.
Affected parents have previously had to laboriously gather information about services, help and relief themselves,” says the consumer advice center.
If a child is diagnosed with a need for care, families can use a child care service or make their home barrier-free.
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Children can also be in need of care and receive an appropriate level of care.
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Consumer advice center explains the procedure for applying for the level of care for children
Applying for a care level is uncomplicated and is strongly recommended by the consumer advice center.
Parents can submit the care application for their child to the responsible care insurance company.
To obtain the relevant form, you should contact your health insurance company, which will then send you the form.
There is no specific form for children, so the standard form must be completed.
If parents are overwhelmed by this, they have a legal right to advice from an appropriate agency.
Children with severe allergies also qualify for a level of care under certain circumstances.
After the care insurance fund has received the application for a care level, a care assessment follows.
An assessor visits the family and assesses the child's care needs.
To do this, parents must fill out a questionnaire from the medical service in which they can explain where the biggest challenges lie in everyday life and when they are most challenged.
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What to do if the care level is rejected?
After the assessment, a decision is made about the level of care.
Parents will receive the decision by mail.
If the application is rejected by the fund, the parents can file an objection.
You can get support from care advisors.
It is important that parents do not wait too long to apply for a care level.
The care benefits are granted from the time the application is submitted, but not retroactively.
The North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Center offers special information for families with children in need of care on the information portal www.pflegewegweiser-nrw.de.
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