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Care on the farm: Innovative care for seniors in rural areas
An innovative concept combines professional care with life on the farm. “Flege am Hof” offers older people care in a family environment and actively promotes their abilities.
Care on the farm: Innovative care for seniors in rural areas
In Wiener Neustadt, the innovative start-up “Pflege am Hof” becomes a contact point for people in need of care and their families. The aim of this project is to offer elderly people dignified care on farms and to actively involve them in their daily routine. This initiative combines professional care with farm life, creating a family environment that meets the needs of the older generation.
The concept of “care on the farm” arose from the need to create an alternative care option, particularly in rural regions. Families are often faced with the challenge of placing their loved ones in care facilities, which is accompanied by a loss of familiarity and contact with nature. Elisabeth Auer, who is implementing this idea with her team, explains: “Our goal is to offer a small-structured form of care through which older people are actively involved in everyday life and are part of the community.”
The creative mind behind the project
The initiative is supported by four women who combine their skills from different specialist areas. Elisabeth Auer, an experienced health and nursing nurse, brought the concept to life together with Monika Debelak-Breneis, a management consultant, as well as her sister Eva-Maria Auer, who works in marketing, and architect Anna Prüller. Her ideas were born during extensive research for Auer's master's thesis, in which she dealt with demographic change and innovative care concepts.
The idea of a nursing operation on a farm is not new. During her time in the Netherlands, where she got to know the care farm model, she realized how much quality of life this concept can offer. By being involved in everyday tasks on the farm, such as gardening or caring for animals, people suffering from dementia in particular benefit from improving their general well-being, increasing appetite and promoting social interactions.
Support from the university of applied sciences
The FH Wiener Neustadt plays an essential role in the implementation of the “Care on the Farm” project. From the beginning of 2024, the start-up will be supported by the University of Applied Sciences' StartUp Center, which will support the founders with advice and programs such as “Green Hexagon” and the “Social Impact Award”. Thomas Wally, head of the center, highlights how the start-up responds to social challenges with its innovative approach and provides solutions. The success of the Social Impact Award illustrates the potential and relevance of the project for the future of care.
The team is currently working hard to implement a pilot project for day care on a farm. At the same time, hypotheses are tested and the network is expanded in order to get to know the target group better and to specify the offer. The short-term goals include the successful introduction of day care, while a total of five years are sought to strategically establish two additional locations in Austria.
The vision behind it is clear: “We want to establish a form of care that not only provides older people with care, but also a higher quality of life,” says Auer. With these ambitions, “Pflege am Hof” takes a significant step into the future of care and creates an urgently needed alternative for older people in rural regions. A detailed report provides more information on this topic on www.meinkreis.at.