On January 22, SHINE, as the leader of the Sharing and Promotion Work Package of the YoungCare project, facilitated the third and final session of the European roundtable with experts. This session was organised in collaboration with the project partners, including ISIS-Sozialforschung (coordinator), AFEdemy – Age-Friendly Environments Academy, Vytauto Didžiojo Universitetas, Cadiai, and Paritätische Selbsthilfe.
The event brought together 28 participants from diverse sectors such as nursing, architecture, social work, social innovation, and medicine, representing countries including Portugal, Italy, Germany, Albania, Turkey, Romania, Belgium, Lithuania, Spain, Austria, Greece, the UK, and Serbia. The roundtable aimed to address key challenges faced by informal caregivers and propose actionable recommendations for policymakers and professional caregivers.
The session opened with a presentation by Carina Dantas, Co-Director of the SHAFE Foundation and CEO of SHINE, who introduced the SHAFE approach and shared key insights developed during the NET4Age-Friendly COST Action.
This was followed by an overview of the YoungCare project, which highlighted key findings from desk research and interviews, including good practices identified in Lithuania, Italy, Portugal, Germany, and the Netherlands.
A key focus of the session was on discussing six critical challenges faced by informal caregivers, which were identified through prior research and during the last co-creation session. Participants reflected on these challenges and contributed additional insights, good practices, and practical recommendations.
The outcomes from this and previous co-creation sessions will be analysed to finalise the recommendations for policymakers and professional caregivers. These recommendations will be designed to align with the key challenges and reflect the collective input of experts.
The YoungCare project is dedicated to fostering strategies that promote the well-being of informal caregivers and adults under 65 in need of care. The final recommendations will serve as a key deliverable, promoting enhanced support systems for informal caregivers across Europe.