Child and youth welfare facilities
be extended to Donaustadt Clinic. A further measure is the introduction of a
standard operating procedure for the Vienna Health Association to guarantee
continuous, high-quality and legally conformant care of long-term patients
who have no claim to social insurance.
X
The waiting time for a nursing place for patients for whom hospitalisation is no longer
necessary shall be shortened further.
X
Hospitalism, i.e. mental and physical impairments due to a lack of social, emotional
and cognitive stimuli, shall be avoided.
Major differences in
quality noticeable
2.3
Child and youth welfare facilities
2.3.1
Introduction
The commissions visited 102 child and youth welfare facilities in 2020. As
on the visits in previous years, major differences in quality in the individual
facilities were noticeable. There is a very clear connection between the staffing
ratio and the quality of care. Structural deficits caused by understaffing can
only be compensated by the high level of dedication of the staff for a short
period of time. This was clearly evident during the first lockdown in spring
2020 as well as when there was a considerably higher risk of infection in
autumn 2020. Facilities with a low staffing ratio found it far more difficult to
overcome the crisis. Existing weaknesses worsened as a result of the increased
effort required during the pandemic.
Looking back at 2020, the NPM sees positive developments in the child and
youth welfare facilities thanks to the cooperation with different institutions:
Uniform standards were defined to harmonise quality in residential child
and youth welfare facilities on the initiative of FICE Austria (International
Federation of Educative Communities) in cooperation with representatives
from 19 organisations. The NPM was also involved (see NPM Reports 2018
and 2019, p. 71 and p. 64 et seq. respectively). The standards were defined
with scientific support and presented at a kick-off event at the premises of the
AOB in May 2019. There were follow-up events in Tyrol, Salzburg, Vorarlberg,
Lower Austria and Carinthia, in which commission members took part as
speakers. Further events were planned in the other Laender but had to be
cancelled both in spring and autumn 2020 due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Great interest in FICE
quality standards
63
At all of the conferences held, the experts showed great interest in this
publication that is unique in Europe. In Tyrol, it was announced that the
standards would be used as the benchmark for child and youth welfare that
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