The KoordinAID project was carried out as a feasibility study aimed at creating an integrated care model for rural regions, specifically the Kinzigtal area. The core objective was to support informal caregivers by making the resources of local care communities—comprising professional, semi‑professional, and informal actors—more visible, accessible, and coordinated through an innovative IT‑based infrastructure. The project ran from 1 August 2022 to 31 July 2023 and was funded by a German federal or state programme, although the exact funding body is not specified in the report. The consortium was led by the Hochschule Furtwangen (HFU) and included partners such as the BZPD, a local health and care network office, the Caritas Ortsverband, an active citizen community, several technical partners, and representatives from a nationwide citizen council.

The scientific work was organised around a participatory, co‑creative research and development process. First, HFU and the BZPD organised an ELSI workshop that used the online tool ELSI‑SAT to identify ethical concerns, particularly around the storage and handling of personal data from private care networks. An Ethics Canvas was also produced to guide ongoing reflection. In the first phase, systematic stakeholder analyses and life‑world case studies were conducted in the target region. These analyses fed into the creation of two prototype “care journeys” that mapped typical tasks, stress points, and relief needs of informal caregivers at different stages of home‑based care. The journeys were validated in an online World Café session with caregivers, community actors, and technical partners, revealing a strong demand for support in building and stabilising individual care arrangements and for improving the visibility of the local care landscape.

Subsequent co‑creation workshops translated these findings into concrete solution concepts. A shared consultation model was proposed, integrating technology‑supported visualisation tools that enable caregivers to reflect on their own networks. A central database of actors and offers was designed to provide a transparent overview of available resources, thereby enhancing accessibility for both caregivers and community members. Additionally, information and communication technology (ICT) solutions were identified to facilitate collaboration within private care arrangements. These technical and organisational building blocks were mapped in a schematic that illustrates their interdependencies.

For the planned implementation phase, the consortium evaluated potential evaluation instruments and selected the SCIROCCO Maturity Model for Integrated Care, which had already been used in preliminary work by the partners. This model will serve as the basis for a structured evaluation of the implementation phase, allowing the project to assess progress against established maturity criteria for integrated care systems.

The report also documents the dissemination strategy. The HFU has already presented preliminary results at the 5th Cluster Conference “Future of Care” and has published a poster on digital coordination of relief offers for care communities. Further scientific outputs, including papers, posters, and conference presentations, are planned. The HFU intends to incorporate the findings into academic discussions, teaching, and continuing education programmes.

Although the second implementation phase could not secure additional funding, the HFU and the consortium are actively seeking alternative financing options to bring the developed concept to life in Kinzigtal and potentially other rural regions. The project’s outcomes provide a transferable framework for building socio‑technical innovations that strengthen local care communities and alleviate the burden on informal caregivers.