Caring relatives

If you get informed early, you have to pay for it yourself

Claudia Hemetsberger-Wasserbauer with her mother Hedwig Wasserbauer. She attended courses to prepare for her role as a carer.

(Bild: Tschepp Markus)

If elderly parents need care, their hats are on fire. A Salzburg social institution is offering free courses for people who get advice early on. A training apartment has been set up in Puch-Urstein for this purpose.

Claudia Hemetsberger-Wasserbauer has prepared herself well for caring for her frail mother. She spent six months on care leave. In the jungle of elderly care, the Salzburg native still needs a lot of knowledge.

"In our case, it's about nutrition, exercise and other topics," says Hemetsberger-Wasserbauer. She has booked almost all the training courses for relatives offered by Salzburger Hilfswerk in Puch - and is therefore an exception.

Training apartment for relatives

In the specially equipped training apartment in Puch-Urstein, relatives of elderly people learn how to make life easier for them in their own four walls. The aim is to avoid tripping hazards. Or how to overcome the difficulties of old age with aids such as grab rails. The speakers will also answer questions about how to deal with dementia and care allowances.

The federal government only pays if care allowance is received
The majority of those whose parents need care are not prepared. This is the experience of staff at local social services. According to Hilfswerk, one reason for this is the lack of free courses for relatives. So far, the federal government has only paid if an elderly person is already receiving care allowance. If someone wants to prepare themselves preventively, this is not supported.

My phone often rang just after visiting hours at the hospital. People didn't know what to do because relatives in need of care had been sent home.

Ein früherer Salzburger Bürgermeister

It becomes critical when senior citizens can no longer live alone after a stay in hospital. Even before the care crisis, this was the case according to a former head of the local authority: "My phone often rang immediately after visiting hours at the hospital. People didn't know what to do because relatives in need of care had been sent home."