Deutsche Stiftung für chronisch Kranke

Name

Deutsche Stiftung für chronisch Kranke

Legal name

Deutsche Stiftung für chronisch Kranke

Website

https://dsck.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Research Foundation

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Global Health Research, Evidence & Technical Assistance Organizations (HLAJAKAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health Systems Strengthening & Primary Care Development (HLAJAKAJ), Health Systems Strengthening & Global Health Technical Assistance (BPADAEAH), Global Health Research, Clinical Trials & Product Development Partnerships (PDPs) (HLAJAOAM)

Keywords

• Chronic disease care
• Healthcare research foundation
• Digital health innovation
• Health services research
• Patient-centered care

Headquarters

HQ city

Fürth

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Private donations: The foundation is funded primarily through private donations. Donors receive a donation receipt; for donations up to €300, the payment receipt or bank statement serves as the tax-deductible donation certificate.
2. Public research funding: The foundation receives public funding from multiple sources: the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), EU funding programs (e.g., Interreg, EIT Health, Innovative Health Initiative), and German state government grants (e.g., Land Schleswig-Holstein, Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Gesundheit und Pflege, Ministerium für Soziales, Arbeit, Gesundheit und Demografie Rheinland-Pfalz, Innovationsfonds des Gemeinsamen Bundesausschusses).
3. No industry state investments: The foundation explicitly states it does not accept state investments (Zustiftungen) from industry, ensuring independence from commercial healthcare industry influence.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Deutsche Stiftung für chronisch Kranke (DScK) is a non-profit, independent foundation that conducts and coordinates healthcare innovation projects for people with chronic diseases in Germany and Europe. Its core work spans four pillars: (1) project work that develops and evaluates new care models, digital health solutions, and decision support systems for conditions including heart failure, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, post-COVID-19, dementia, obesity, and rare diseases; (2) empirical social research focused on acceptance, motivation, and needs of patients and healthcare professionals; (3) networking among university hospitals, health insurers, patient organizations, and policymakers; and (4) public information. The foundation's outputs include care coordination frameworks, quality assurance measures, eHealth platforms, and peer-reviewed research, all delivered within funded collaborative projects rather than as commercial products.

Product overview

Deutsche Stiftung für chronisch Kranke (DScK) is a nonprofit foundation focused on improving healthcare for people with chronic diseases. The organization does not offer a unified commercial product but rather develops and coordinates multiple research projects and healthcare solutions. Key offerings include: DoctorME, a self-learning decision support system for heart failure patients; CASEPLUS-SimPat, a web-based case management system for dementia patients; the HI-PLUS eHealth platform for heart failure care management; and DOQUVIDE, a quality assurance measure for telecardiology patients. Additionally, DScK coordinates regional healthcare networks (HI-Netzwerk NORD), mobile healthcare services (WATCH Post-COVID clinic), and digital prevention programs (PräVaNet). The foundation also contributes to the development of decision support systems like the iCARE4CVD system. All offerings are research-driven and primarily funded through public grants rather than commercial sales.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DoctorME A self-learning, guideline-based decision support system for people with heart failure developed under the PASSION-HF EU project. Enables 24/7 care support, helping patients manage their health at home and reducing unnecessary hospital visits.
• CASEPLUS-SimPat An intersectoral web-based case management system for multimorbid dementia patients developed in the SimPat project. Connects patients, caregivers, nurses, and physicians through HL7 interfaces with hospital information systems, including a portal for family members.
• HI-PLUS eHealth Platform An eHealth platform used in the HI-PLUS project to provide optimized case and care management for heart failure patients through specially trained non-medical staff, with trial results published in Clinical Research in Cardiology in 2026 demonstrating improved care quality and reduced hospital readmissions.
• DOQUVIDE Quality Assurance Measure Quality assurance measure to assess care quality for telecardiology patients with implanted cardiac devices (pacemakers, ICDs, CRT devices) in the outpatient sector, documenting vital parameters, cardiac events, and diagnostic/therapeutic procedures with standardized event forms, producing annual quality reports.
• HI-Netzwerk NORD Heart failure network initiative in Schleswig-Holstein aiming to improve cross-sectoral collaboration between cardiology practices, hospitals, rehabilitation clinics, and general practitioners through digital connectivity for heart failure patients.
• WATCH Mobile Post-COVID Clinic (PoCO-Bus) Mobile post-COVID outpatient clinic (PoCO-Bus) providing near-home examination combined with comprehensive cross-symptom telemedical care including brain training, rehabilitation sports programs, and behavioral therapy for post-COVID patients in Thuringia.
• PräVaNet Digital Prevention Program Digitalized program for cardiovascular prevention in type 2 diabetes patients, including digital monitoring and treatment strategies (ePrävention), specially trained nurses, and cross-specialist prevention strategies to counteract deterioration in patients with diabetes type 2.
• iCARE4CVD Decision Support System Decision support system under development in the iCARE4CVD project, providing real-time feedback on therapy decisions for physicians and patients, based on prognostic models using biomarkers, predictive algorithms, and AI for cardiovascular disease management from early risk to established heart failure.

Quantifiable outcome

• HI-PLUS demonstrated that optimized case and care management with trained heart failure nurses and an eHealth platform can improve care quality and reduce hospital readmissions (full trial results published 2026 in Clinical Research in Cardiology).
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered core partner, flagship project partner, key technology partner, key international partner, key industry partner, technology partner, core academic partner and core administrative partner.

• diabetesDE – Deutsche Diabetes-Hilfecore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization on the DScK website. diabetesDE is a major German diabetes patient organization and advocacy group. The partnership is part of the foundation's broader networking strategy to connect different chronic disease stakeholder communities.
• Stiftung Deutsche Schlaganfall-Hilfe (German Stroke Aid Foundation)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization on the DScK website. The foundation collaborates with stroke patient organizations as part of its cross-condition approach to cardiovascular and chronic disease care.
• Deutsche Nierenstiftung (German Kidney Foundation)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization on the DScK website. Represents collaboration with kidney disease patient advocates within the foundation's chronic disease portfolio.
• Deutsche Herzstiftung (German Heart Foundation)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization on the DScK website. Given that heart failure and cardiovascular disease are central to the foundation's project portfolio (HI-Netzwerk NORD, HI-PLUS, PRE-DETECT-HF, iCARE4CVD, CAEHR), this is a key patient advocacy partner.
• Universitäres Herzzentrum Lübeck, UKSH (University Heart Center Lübeck)flagship project partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitiator and lead of HI-Netzwerk NORD project. The UKSH Lübeck is the clinical partner for establishing a heart failure network in Schleswig-Holstein, working with the DScK on patient-centered evaluation of cross-sector care improvements.
• Universitätsklinikum Jena (UKJ)flagship project partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead partner in the WATCH project (mobile post-COVID outpatient clinic + telemedical intervention in Thuringia). DScK conducts user behavior and adherence analysis within the WATCH project.
• Deutsches Zentrum für Herzinsuffizienz Würzburg (DZHI), Universitätsklinikum Würzburgflagship project partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead partner in HI-PLUS project. DZHI Würzburg leads a cluster-randomized trial on structured case management and eHealth platform for heart failure patients; DScK conducts surveys on care quality and acceptance.
• Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlinflagship project partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in WATCH (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin co-partner), CAEHR (Use Case C — ambulatory cardiovascular care), PräVaNet (Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité), iCARE4CVD, and SmartSenior. The Charité is one of Germany's most significant research hospital partners.
• HiGHmed e.V.core partnerTechnology or IntegrationA founding partner in the CAEHR project (Cardiovascular diseases — Enhancing Healthcare through cross-sectoral Routine data integration), one of six BMBF-funded Digital Progress Hubs Health. HiGHmed contributes medical informatics interoperability standards and data integration infrastructure.
• AOK Nordost, AOK Niedersachsen, AOK Bayerncore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple AOK regional health insurance funds participate as funding partners and consortium members in CAEHR, PräVaNet (AOK Nordost), and ACHT (AOK Bayern). They provide financing and implementation pathways for new care models within the statutory health insurance system.
• BARMER and Techniker Krankenkasse (TK)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealth insurance funds participating as partners in the WATCH project, providing coverage pathways and funding for telemedical post-COVID care in Thuringia.
• Kassenärztliche Vereinigung Thüringen (KVT)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the WATCH project, supporting the integration of telemedical interventions within the ambulatory care sector in Thuringia.
• Noah Labs (Germany)key technology partnerTechnology or IntegrationTechnology partner in PRE-DETECT-HF. Noah Labs provides the digital health solution that is being clinically validated — a speech-based machine learning model for early detection of heart failure decompensation using wearable vital parameters and voice analysis.
• Maastricht Universitair Medisch Centrum (Netherlands)key international partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean research partner in PRE-DETECT-HF clinical study, contributing to the multi-country validation of the digital health solution for heart failure decompensation detection.
• Hospital Clinic of Barcelona (Spain)key international partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean partner in PRE-DETECT-HF, contributing clinical validation expertise and patient recruitment for the heart failure digital health solution study.
• Novo Nordisk Pharma GmbH (Denmark/Germany)key industry partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerPharmaceutical industry partner in iCARE4CVD (Individualised care from early risk of CVD to established heart failure), contributing to the development of prognostic models and decision support systems for cardiovascular disease care pathways.
• JDRF International (USA)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational patient advocacy and research foundation partner in iCARE4CVD, bringing patient-centered research perspectives and diabetes (type 1) advocacy experience to the cardiovascular disease prognostic modeling project.
• Huawei Technologies Francetechnology partnerTechnology or IntegrationTechnology partner in iCARE4CVD, contributing technical expertise in AI/ML model development, data infrastructure, and digital health platform capabilities for cardiovascular risk stratification.
• Universität Maastricht (Netherlands)core academic partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead academic partner in iCARE4CVD. Contributes expertise in cardiovascular research, health services research, and European collaborative project coordination to the prognostic model development.
• University College Dublin (Ireland)core academic partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in iCARE4CVD, contributing nursing and cardiovascular care research expertise to the European cardiovascular disease care optimization project.
• DT Deutsche Stiftungstreuhand AGcore administrative partnerOthersThe foundation is administered under a trust arrangement by DT Deutsche Stiftungstreuhand AG, Fürth. Julia Geiselhofer serves as Head of Finance at the foundation while also holding a role at DT Deutsche Stiftungstreuhand AG.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• EIT Health: EU public-private partnership funding healthcare innovation and evidence-based digital health projects across Europe — one of DScK's actual funding partners in PRE-DETECT-HF. Comparable as a consortium-coordinator model for chronic-disease innovation, but operating as funder/intermediary rather than executing researcher.

Direct peers

• Deutsche Herzstiftung: Germany's leading cardiovascular patient advocacy and research funder, partnering with DScK on cardiac projects (HI-Netzwerk NORD, HI-PLUS). Comparable as a non-profit organization operating at the intersection of patient advocacy, cardiovascular research funding, and public information.
• Stiftung Charité: Berlin-based private health foundation funding innovative healthcare research, training, and care-model projects in Germany. Closely comparable to DScK in mission (improving healthcare delivery), funding sources (private donations + public grants), and project-based research model.
• Wissenschaftliches Institut der AOK (WIdO): AOK-affiliated research institute producing health services research, quality measurement and care delivery evidence in Germany. Direct functional analogue to DScK in producing empirical, stakeholder-engaged evidence on chronic disease care and integrated care models.

Others

• Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) / Helmholtz Health associations: German publicly-funded health research consortia aligned with DScK's chronic-disease/translational population health research mission. Overlap is thematic rather than structural — these are state-funded research centers, not donation-funded foundations — but they share the empirical-evidence research model.

Broad incumbents

• Wellcome Trust: UK-based independent charitable foundation funding biomedical research, digital health, and population health evidence generation. Comparable as a private, non-commercial foundation producing research outputs at higher scale, with similar governance and grant-making DNA.
• Bertelsmann Stiftung: Large German think-tank-style foundation running policy-relevant healthcare research including digital health adoption, integrated care, and PROMs. Comparable in mission but operates at meaningfully larger scale with a broader public-policy remit than DScK.
• Robert Bosch Stiftung: Major German foundation with a substantial healthcare and health systems portfolio, funding health services research, digital health, and chronic disease projects. Much larger than DScK but shares the operating model of a private, donation-funded foundation that runs and commissions healthcare research.
• IQWiG (Institut für Qualität und Wirtschaftlichkeit im Gesundheitswesen): Germany's federal health technology assessment agency, generating evidence on the benefits of medical interventions for reimbursement decisions. Shares DScK's empirical-evidence orientation but operates at national-policy scale for statutory HTA rather than project-level care delivery research.
• Commonwealth Fund: US private foundation conducting health policy and health systems research internationally, including chronic disease management and digital health. Comparable as a non-commercial research foundation generating international evidence on healthcare delivery improvement.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/deutsche-stiftung-f%C3%BCr-chronisch-kranke

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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