Shortfall of 769 by 2030

Carinthia has a backlog of daycare places

People who are cared for in a day care center are not dependent on a fixed place in a nursing home.

(Bild: picturedesk.com/Stefan Boness / Visum / picturedesk.com)

Living in your own four walls for as long as possible: that's what day care centers are for. By 2030, 947 places should be available to Carinthians, but there are currently only 178. However, the provincial audit office also sees other problem areas.

Memory training, exercise, gymnastics, dance, games, walks as well as cooking, baking and eating in the community - these are the kinds of activities offered by day care centers for the elderly. With such care, many older people are not dependent on a place in a nursing home. The principle of "outpatient before inpatient" is therefore reflected in the political programs and corresponding laws.

Less than a fifth of places built
Unfortunately, the supply in Carinthia is lagging behind - with 3.18 places per 1000 care allowance recipients, we are in second last place. "The State Court of Audit recommends that any future demand be evaluated in detail and then further capacities be created gradually and in a regionally balanced manner," emphasizes LRH Director Günter Bauer. Carinthia is supposed to have 947 daycare centers by 2030, but at 178, only 19 percent of this target has been reached. There are no places at all in the districts of Klagenfurt-Land, Villach and Hermagor.

The opening hours of the day care centers should be aligned with the needs of family caregivers.

Günter Bauer, Landesrechnungshof-Direktor

Minimum standards and more attractiveness
The LRH also criticizes the lack of uniform minimum standards. "A comprehensive guideline with the most important requirements and criteria should be drawn up," says Bauer, who also sees a need to improve the attractiveness of this form of care: "Accessibility plays a key role in attending day care centers. In addition, the opening hours of the day care centers should be aligned with the needs of family caregivers."

In order to boost the establishment of day care centers, the LRH is calling for changes to billing and subsidies. Currently, only the daily rates are taken into account; there is no support for construction and operation. The state is aware of the problem - in the information provided to the LRH, it describes the funding as unattractive, also because the operators have to bear the full fixed costs themselves, regardless of capacity utilization.