In Germany, 4.9 million people are recognized as being in need of care. Four out of five of these people are cared for at home. The need for care often begins gradually, but sometimes from one moment to the next. There are always many questions. How can care be organized? Who pays for support? What legal issues need to be clarified?
North Rhine-Westphalia has a large number of advice and support services. However, many people in need of care and family caregivers lack a compass to guide them to the right place to go. The NRW care guide is intended to fulfill precisely this task.
The free hotline of the NRW care guide provides information on the various questions relating to care and refers people to advice centers that can help them in their individual situation. The advice hotline at calls 0800 40 40 044 on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 am to 12 noon and Thursdays from 2 pm to 5 pm. If you don't want to wait, the chatbot will automatically answer simple and short questions.
You can use the database to search for suitable advice centers or contact offices for care self-help in NRW yourself.
When providing care at home, many families choose to employ a foreign domestic and care worker who lives with the person in need of care and looks after them. This sounds practical at first, but many legal questions arise when it comes to employment. Our advice hotline on 0211 3809 400 provides information on the various options for legally employing foreign domestic and care workers. The consultation hours are Mondays from 2 to 4.30 pm and Wednesdays from 10 am to 12 pm and from 2 to 4.30 pm.
Information for providers
Counseling centers and the care self-help contact offices can register in the database. To do so, you must fill out the registration form. The team will check the data and contact you before approval. The criteria for inclusion in the database agreed with the funding bodies apply to advice centers.
The NRW Care Guide is supported by the Verbraucherzentrale NRW e.V. consumer advice center. The project is funded by the Ministry of Labor, Health and Social Affairs of the state of NRW, the state associations of long-term care insurance funds in NRW and the Association of Private Health Insurers (PKV).
