Authors
Katharina Gabl, Hanna Mayer, Theresa Clement
Published in
Frontiers in health services. Volume 6. Pages 1797479. Epub Jul 08, 2026.
Abstract
Digital technologies offer new opportunities to support family caregivers, a growing priority in ageing societies. Alles Clara is an Austrian digital service that provides low-threshold, individual support by professional counsellors from the fields of nursing and psychology. Central to its effectiveness is a person-centred approach to counselling. Moving beyond the conceptual debate on whether and how person-centred approaches align with digital services, we embarked on a transformational journey, translating practice development (PD) into the digital realm.
Our journey unfolded in three phases: (1) Setting the Scene-analysing the app-usage and counselling characteristics through in-app tracking and user feedback; (2) Encompassing Change-co-creating a concept for PD in Alles Clara through a participatory approach together with counsellors (n = 10) and a newly-introduced practice facilitator; and (3) Packing for the Journey -outlining and structuring key PD strategies to sustainably enable and empower counsellors in providing person-centred counselling in Alles Clara.
Baseline data from 1,263 family caregivers and 342 counselling sessions highlighted the heterogeneity of users and their needs. Requests ranged widely, reflecting the diverse demands placed on digital counselling. Defining our destination meant exploring counsellors' shared values and vision. Identifying key concepts for PD in Alles Clara led us to take first steps to bring the concept into action. Drawing on counsellors' experiences and perspectives, we shaped our approach to PD and jointly drew the map for the path towards high-quality person-centred online counselling. The adapted PD framework provided a coherent structure for organizing developmental strategies and measures, translating abstract values into tangible, actionable practices within the digital environment.
For PD to succeed in digital healthcare, maintaining human connection must remain a deliberate and continuous effort. The cue does not lie in choosing between technology and humanity, but in learning how to travel both. In this sense, packing for the journey ahead becomes a necessity: equipping ourselves with the principles, processes, and attitudes that preserve the human core of care, even as digital transformation continues to reshape practice. PD offers a compass for navigating this terrain, ensuring that the person remains at the very centre of care.
PMID:
42488753
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 23 Jul 2026.
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