HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER - Die Stiftung in der Uni-Kinderklinik Tübingen

What HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER - Die Stiftung in der Uni-Kinderklinik Tübingen does

HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER – Die Stiftung in der Uni-Kinderklinik Tübingen is a legally recognized charitable foundation (rechtsfähige Stiftung) operating since 1999 as the in-house foundation of the Universitätsklinik für Kinder- und Jugendmedizin Tübingen. The foundation's purpose is to fund best-possible treatment, counseling, and support for seriously ill children, adolescents, and their families regardless of diagnosis, extending across the full care continuum from acute hospital treatment through palliative care and the transition to adult medicine. It is governed by a small board led by Chairman Thomas Hassel and Deputy Chair Gabriele Sonntag, with 12 staff handling donor operations, fundraising, and PR.

The foundation operates a portfolio of more than 20 distinct charitable programs rather than a single product. Core offerings include the Sozialfonds emergency financial aid (101 individual family cases in 2025), the Pauline-App pediatric anxiety-reduction mobile application, the KraKiaN device-lending program, the NIDCAP center for premature-infant developmental care, the PALUNA pediatric palliative team, PädSim emergency simulation training, a mobile pediatric intensive-care transport unit, and the Delirbetreuung program (first in Germany). Supporting programs cover therapeutic massage, comic-drawing therapy, play facilities, parent beds, and the Transition/Rückenwind program for chronically ill adolescents.

The revenue model is donation-based with no commercial product sales. Funds are raised from individuals, corporations, partner associations, and event-driven campaigns (Stiftungsfest, benefit concerts, sportive fundraisers, corporate partnerships), and are deployed as direct grants to hospital departments and program operators. The foundation is regulated by the Regierungspräsidium Tübingen and certified by the Finanzamt Tübingen for charitable and public-health purposes. Over 25 years, it has disbursed approximately €7.65 million across nearly 900 projects, with a small, distributed staff and a multi-channel donor engagement model spanning website, social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn), print magazine, email newsletter, and in-person events.

Name

HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER - Die Stiftung in der Uni-Kinderklinik Tübingen

Legal name

Hilfe für kranke Kinder – Die Stiftung in der Uni-Kinderklinik Tübingen

Website

https://hilfe-fuer-kranke-kinder.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

A German charitable foundation operating since 1999 within the University Children's Hospital Tübingen, funding medical equipment, family support services, and pediatric care programs through community donations and events for seriously ill children and their families.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pediatric Healthcare Charity

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Mental Health & Crisis Support Services (BPAGACAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Youth Mental Health, Counseling & Wellbeing (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAK)

Keywords

• Pediatric healthcare philanthropy
• Children's hospital foundation
• Family social services
• Charitable donation programs
• Medical research funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Tübingen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Primary revenue stream through donations from individuals, companies, and organizations supporting the foundation's mission to support sick children and their families at the University Children's Hospital Tübingen.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER is a charitable foundation operating inside the University Children's Hospital Tübingen that funds and delivers programs supporting seriously ill children, adolescents, and their families. Core services include financial emergency assistance (Sozialfonds), pediatric palliative care (PALUNA), premature infant developmental care (NIDCAP), pediatric emergency simulation training (PädSim), mobile intensive care transport, family support services, therapeutic and creative programs, and transition support for chronically ill adolescents approaching adult care. Over 25 years, the foundation has funded nearly 900 projects totaling approximately 7.65 million euros in donations.

Product overview

HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER is a charitable foundation supporting the University Children's Hospital in Tübingen, Germany. The organization does not offer a unified technology product but rather operates a portfolio of charitable programs and projects. Core programs include the Sozialfonds (social emergency fund for families in financial distress), the Pauline-App (virtual clinic tour app for children), KraKiaN (technology lending program providing laptops/tablets to patients), NIDCAP center for premature infant care, PALUNA palliative care team, PädSim emergency simulation training, and the Kinderintensivtransport mobile ICU. Additional offerings include play facilities, family accommodations (parent beds), teddy clinic program, comic drawing therapy, therapeutic touch massage, and transition support for chronically ill adolescents. Over 25 years, nearly 900 projects have been funded with approximately 7.65 million euros, focusing on medical equipment, family support, research, and child-friendly hospital environment improvements.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pauline-App A mobile application that guides children through a 'virtual children's clinic', explaining examinations in a playful way to reduce anxiety about hospital visits. For young patients at the University Children's Hospital Tübingen.
• Sozialfonds (Social Fund) An emergency fund supporting families in financial distress due to their child's serious illness. Provides assistance for visiting costs, accommodations, and other financial burdens faced by families treated at the University Children's Hospital Tübingen.
• PALUNA Palliativteam Ambulatory palliative care team and socio-pedagogical counseling for seriously ill children and their families at the University Children's Hospital Tübingen.
• Teddyklinik Tübingen A program where children experience typical medical examination situations with their stuffed animals, helping them lose fear of hospital visits. For young patients and visitors to the University Children's Hospital Tübingen.
• Frühgeborenensimulator Paulchen A special premature infant simulator for emergency training in neonatology. Weighs 1000g and corresponds to a premature infant at 27 weeks gestation; one of the first of its kind in Germany. For neonatology staff training.
• Delirbetreuung (Pediatric ICU Delirium Care) First in Germany: special care for children with delirium on pediatric intensive care units using trained educational therapists. Funding of approximately EUR 170,000 in 2025 for the program at the Kinderintensivstation.
• Therapeutic Touch Massage for Parents A relaxation service for parents using the Therapeutic Touch method, providing respite during crisis and helping parents regain strength while their child is hospitalized.
• Hilfe für Kinder mit Organversagen Care and counseling for families with children before and after organ transplantation, providing psychosocial support at the University Children's Hospital Tübingen.
• Elternbetten (Parent Beds) Parent beds provided for the entire children's clinic, enabling parents to stay with their children during hospitalization.
• Comiczeichnen (Comic Art Therapy) Weekly professional comic artist visits to the children's clinic, creating personalized stories with children as an important tool for coping with illness through creative expression.
• Sozialmedizinisches Kindernachsorgezentrum Social-medical aftercare center providing support for families after discharge from the children's clinic, facilitating transition from hospital to home.
• PädSim Notfall-Simulationstrainings Emergency simulation training for clinic staff, including specialized training for neonatology and parents/relatives. Mobile training equipment available since 2014 for on-site simulation training.
• NIDCAP Zentrum Center for individualized developmental care of premature infants, pioneering the NIDCAP concept in Germany and serving as the first German NIDCAP training center.
• Kinderintensivtransport Mobile intensive care unit for transporting and transferring critically ill children and adolescents, often saving lives in transit.
• KraKiaN (Kranke Kinder ans Netz) A project providing laptops and tablets to children and adolescents for maintaining contact with family, friends, kindergarten, and school during hospital stays.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 900 projects funded over 25 years totaling €7.65 million
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Kinderklinik Tübingen (University Children's Hospital Tübingen)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary strategic partner - the foundation is the official foundation within the University Children's Hospital Tübingen, supporting best-possible treatment, counseling and support for seriously ill children and their families.
• Dachtel hilft kranken Kindern e.V.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partner association that supports the foundation through joint fundraising projects including hobby artist markets, vehicle donations, and equipment funding.
• Förderverein für krebskranke Kinder Tübingen e.V.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent association partner supporting children with cancer at the Tübingen children's clinic.
• Eltern- und Fördervereine der KinderklinikcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent and support associations of the children's clinic working together with the foundation.
• DIE KAVALLERIE GmbHminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCreative agency responsible for concept, design and programming of the foundation's website.
• Diabetes FördervereinminorOthersDiabetes support association listed as partner of the foundation.
• EselsbrückeminorOthersListed as partner organization of the foundation.
• Föhre KidsminorOthersListed as partner organization of the foundation.
• Muko RGT (Mukoviszidose Regionalgruppe Tübingen)minorOthersCystic fibrosis support group listed as partner of the foundation.
• Lichtblick TübingenminorOthersListed as partner organization of the foundation.
• FUNKE TübingenminorOthersListed as partner organization of the foundation.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Aktion Mensch: Germany's largest social nonprofit, supporting inclusion of children and people with disabilities through funding programs and family support. Broad incumbent: much larger scale (hundreds of millions in annual giving) with overlapping family/child welfare mission but broader disability and inclusion focus.
• SOS-Kinderdörfer (SOS Children's Villages Germany): Major German children's welfare organization providing alternative family care, education, and family strengthening programs. Broad incumbent: nationally scaled child welfare nonprofit with donation-based funding that competes for the same family-focused donor segments, though its primary model is residential care rather than hospital partnership.
• Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk: Established German children's welfare foundation advocating for children's rights and funding child welfare projects across Germany. Broad incumbent: nationally focused nonprofit competing for the same donor base from German families and institutions, with broader child welfare advocacy rather than hospital-specific support.
• Stiftung Deutsche Krebshilfe: Germany's leading cancer charity funding research and supporting cancer patients including children with cancer. Broad incumbent: much larger scale with overlapping pediatric oncology support programs, competes for disease-related donations and corporate partnerships in the same region.

Direct peers

• Björn Schulz Stiftung: Berlin-based foundation supporting children with serious illnesses and their families through hospice care, home-based support, and family assistance programs. Direct comparable: similar mission of comprehensive family support around pediatric serious illness, donation-funded, with comparable program breadth and headcount scale.
• Stiftung KinderHerz: German foundation dedicated to children with congenital heart defects, funding medical research, family support, and clinical care improvements. Direct comparable: disease-specific pediatric health nonprofit with similar donation model and hospital partnership structure, though focused on a single disease category.
• Förderverein für krebskranke Kinder Tübingen e.V. Listed partner of Hilfe für kranke Kinder; parent association supporting children with cancer at the Tübingen children's clinic. Direct comparable: same beneficiary population (seriously ill children at the same hospital), similar parent-association nonprofit structure, and explicitly partnered with the subject foundation.
• McDonald's Kinderhilfe Stiftung: Ronald McDonald House Germany foundation operating family accommodation and support programs for families of seriously ill children across multiple German hospitals. Direct comparable: both are hospital-affiliated foundations providing family housing, financial aid, and child welfare support with donation-based funding.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCXqSG8W9JcYqDT9
• Facebookfacebook.com/hilfefuerkrankekinder
• Instagraminstagram.com/hilfe_fuer_kranke_kinder
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hilfe-f%C3%BCr-kranke-kinder

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about HILFE FÜR KRANKE KINDER - Die Stiftung in der Uni-Kinderklinik Tübingen