Neufahrn's head of early support, Pia Rumrich-Schäfer, on new challenges: Autism is a big issue

Created: 05/24/2022, 10:00 am

Early support is still based in Neufahrn am Grünlandweg.

By 2025, however, new premises are to be built in the Neufahrn family center, which is currently being planned and implemented.

© Lebenshilfe

Early support in Neufahrn turns 30. Pia Rumrich-Schäfer, who has headed the facility since 2017, talked about the biggest challenges in an interview.

Ms Rumrich-Schäfer, why did you decide to work in early support?

After training as an occupational therapist in 2005, I actually wanted to work in the adult sector, for example in neuro-rehab or forensics.

But then I came to Augsburg as a cooperation partner through a practice - and I was immediately enthusiastic about the work, so I got stuck in this area.

Through interdisciplinary work and close cooperation with day-care centers, you can achieve success fairly quickly, which is incredibly motivating.

Here you also learn a lot from the other professional groups in early support – and you can then transfer that to your own way of working.

Then it was probably the right decision for you to “get stuck”?

The schedule is exhausting, but overall you have more flexibility in organizing your work, so you can start very early or later.

The close contact with the families is also extremely enriching, which can be further intensified through home visits and joint excursions with the children or meals together.

If you have long and close relationships with the children and families, you will definitely be invited.

The complex early intervention work keeps me mentally and physically fit.

It never gets boring.

How are you currently staffed in Neufahrn Early Childhood Education?

Until recently, we were a team of 13, consisting of our administrator, a psychologist, five teachers, two occupational therapists with me, two physiotherapists, a speech therapist and a speech therapist.

Unfortunately, our speech therapist has now started her well-deserved retirement and we have not yet found a successor.

As almost everywhere, one notices the shortage of skilled workers here.

How have patients and their concerns changed in recent years?

Since I have been working in early support, children with general developmental problems or delays have been among the main clientele.

The cause is usually not known, i.e. there is no disability or illness.

The corona pandemic has generally “worsened” the disorders in children – especially with regard to socio-emotional, motor and language development.

This topic will probably reverberate for a while.

This means that not only the families, but also the network, especially the day-care centers, need more support.

Many families with a migration background also come to us.

Over time, more and more different cultures have been added - and the war in Ukraine will also reinforce this.

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Migration backgrounds therefore bring changes from the outside.

What about changes inside, in the nuclear family?

As is well known, children today spend much more time in day-care centers than they did a few years ago.

Because both parents almost always work, the support is increasingly taking place directly in the day-care centers, which the children are much more likely to attend with the day-care center than in the past.

In fact, families are becoming more and more needy as a result of social change - but it is becoming increasingly difficult for us to reach them and we also have to meet needs that actually have nothing to do with early intervention work, but fall within the area of ​​social work.

Overall, it can also be said that the children's language problems and psychosocial problems are increasing: Earlier and more frequent media consumption via television,

Mobile phones or tablets are not good for their development and often increase difficulties with language and motor skills.

The disorders of our patients have become much more complex and there are more and more construction sites that we have to take care of.

Are these changes likely to have an impact on your team and the way you work?

It is exactly like that!

Overall, everything is becoming more complex: not only do initial interviews take longer and longer because of the increased need to speak or the communication difficulties, but the entire admission process has also become more intensive.

As already indicated, many mobile appointments now take place in the day-care centers.

Of course, this has to be coordinated and organized.

As a team, we deal a lot with topics such as autism, work with parents, migration and self-care.

Although we do as much preventive work as possible, we take work home with us: either mentally or because we don't actually get everything done at work.

In conversation: Pia Rumrich-Schäfer (right) has been the head of Neufahrner Early Childhood Education since 2017.

© Lebenshilfe

Do you then see the greatest challenges in the coming years in the areas of autism, migration and more complex disorders?

Yes, these are definitely the big issues of the coming years.

More and more children with autism spectrum disorders are coming to us.

More and more families with a migration background are also moving to our area.

This means that we have to network better with the relevant specialist departments, such as interpreters.

The disorders will also remain complex, which in turn means that the inclusion specialist service in the day-care centers must be further expanded and, for example, further training on the subject of autism is required.

With the increase in the number of children, we will also have to offer more human resources.

The question is whether we can afford it or whether the waiting lists are getting longer.

Where do you see early support Neufahrn on its 40th birthday in 2032?

In a nice new building with hopefully more employees (laughs).

In 2017 we asked the municipality whether a new early childhood education and thus a family center could be set up with the inclusive Zauberwald daycare center in Neufahrn.

In addition to the kindergarten, we will then also be integrated into this as early support.

Staff apartments and a crèche are also planned.

Have you ever thought about quitting your job due to the high demands?

No, that's out of the question for me.

I love my diverse and challenging work with the children and I really hope that the external circumstances such as lack of space, staff shortages, etc. can also be managed well in the future.

The smiles of the children and the often rapid progress are the best incentive for me to keep going.

One more question at the end: The early support of Lebenshilfe Freising is currently looking for company sponsorships or donations in general.

Why is this so important to your facility?

We have children who need a lot of support material, for example for supported communication or other self-made aids such as writing or sitting aids.

These are expensive – but we still have to buy them.

With the help of donations we could support these families.

And of course it would be nice if after the move we could set up a play therapy room to help us reach our full potential.

The number of children will also increase.

(By the way: everything from the region is now also available in our regular Freising newsletter.)

The interview was conducted by

from the press and public relations department at Lebenshilfe Freising.