From prototype to practice New app supports caregiving relatives in the Oberberg district.

Oberbergischer Kreis. On July 27, 2026, the pilot project for the digital support system TeReS for family caregivers will start in the Oberbergischer Kreis. The system combines an app for caregivers with an AI-supported advisory tool for senior citizen and care counseling centers. Initially, the counseling centers in Bergneustadt, Gummersbach, and Lindlar will participate in the trial – but all citizens from the 13 cities and municipalities of the Oberbergischer Kreis can use the app for advice.

The app is designed to provide caregivers with early, low-threshold access to care knowledge and to draw attention to suitable support and relief services. Users record their current care situation via the app and receive suggestions for suitable assistance. The information is transmitted anonymously to the participating counseling centers. There, an advisory tool supports the professionals in structuring the support needs and recommending suitable regional services. Personal consultation remains a central component of the offering.

“Digital technologies cannot replace personal consultation but can complement it sensibly. Against the backdrop of demographic change, we are looking for solutions that relieve our counseling centers and at the same time make it easier for family caregivers to access support,” says Christine Prinz, professional coordinator of the senior citizen and care counseling centers of the Oberbergischer Kreis.

Most people in need of care are cared for at home – predominantly by family members. For them, caregiving is often associated with significant time, physical, and psychological burdens. Relief services such as care courses, everyday help, day or short-term care, and self-help groups are often only used when the burden is already high. In North Rhine-Westphalia, around 1.39 million people in need of care lived in 2024, about 87 percent of whom were cared for at home.

“The Oberbergischer Kreis offers very good conditions for testing our system within its established counseling network. Particularly valuable is the close collaboration with the local advisors, who continuously contribute their experiences to the further development of the application,” says Martina Thelen, head of the office of Gesundheitsregion KölnBonn e.V. The Oberbergischer Kreis has been a member of the association since 2009, which supports the pilot regions in the project.

The scientific evaluation is being carried out by the Institute for Nursing Science at the University of Cologne. The system was developed in collaboration with the gewi-Institute for Health Economics e.V. and NursIT Institute GmbH. The three-month pilot project is also taking place simultaneously in the city of Cologne.

People who support or care for relatives at home can download the app from the App Store starting July 27, test it, and contribute their experiences as part of the scientific accompanying study. The app will be made available in the Google Play Store in the coming days.

The TeReS research project runs until June 2027 and is funded by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia with funds from the EFRE/JTF program NRW as part of the “Gesünder.IN.NRW” funding call.

Further information: www.teres.care
Contact: 

• Gesundheitsregion KölnBonn e.V., Johanna Elfering, elfering@health-region.de, +49 1575 51 51 705
   
• Oberbergischer Kreis, Coordination of Senior Citizen and Care Counseling, Christine Prinz, christine.prinz@obk.de, 02261 885003