Karus

What Karus does

Karus (KARUS VZW) is a Belgian non-profit psychiatric hospital operating two campuses in East Flanders — Campus Merelbeke-Melle (Caritasstraat 76) and Campus Gent (Sint-Denijs-Westrem) — plus a sheltered housing site operated under the Tendens initiatief beschut wonen. Formed in 2018 through the merger of Psychiatrisch Centrum Caritas and Psychiatrisch Ziekenhuis Sint-Camillus, the organization employs approximately 850 staff and serves patients across the full lifespan through specialized care programs: De Kaap and Branding (children and youth, ages 6-18), Jovo and Dageraad (young adults, 15-25), Prisma and Kasteelplus (psychosis and addiction), Hestia (gerontopsychiatry, 65+), High Intensive Care (crisis), Moeder & baby, and Cadans (personality disorders), supported by mobile teams MOBiLteam and Mobiel Crisisteam, first-line psychological care, and sheltered housing.

The underlying technology stack centers on an evolving Elektronisch Patiëntendossier (shared electronic patient record) being repositioned from an internal working tool into a collaborative space where patients can read observations, react to team reports, and contribute to therapy and crisis plans. All operations are conducted under the Belgian RIZIV convention tariff system, with no honorarium supplements charged by affiliated physicians, and the organization holds Belgian recognition number 959 with VAT BE 0861.314.369.

Karus makes money almost exclusively through public health insurance reimbursement for psychiatric hospital care, residential treatment, day treatment, outpatient services, mobile team interventions, and sheltered housing — a regulated tariff-based revenue model. Distribution is regional and referral-driven: a centralized Opname- en zorgvragen intake service routes patients from general practitioners, other hospitals, and network partners (Het PAKT for adults, RADAR for children/youth), with UZ Gent collaboration on the Mobile Crisis Team Gent Zuid. Marketing is primarily organic via the corporate website (karus.be), Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, supplemented by community events such as Open Geestdagen (Open Mental Health Days).

Name

Karus

Legal name

KARUS VZW

Website

https://karus.be

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Karus (KARUS VZW) is a Belgian non-profit psychiatric hospital operating two East Flanders campuses (Merelbeke-Melle and Gent), delivering specialized mental health care across all age groups through 14+ care programs, mobile teams, and sheltered housing, funded via RIZIV public health insurance tariffs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mental Health Services

NAICS

Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals (622210), Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120)

SIC

Services-Hospitals (8060), Services-Specialty Outpatient Facilities, Nec (8093), Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHLAFACAH

Crisis Stabilization Units & Psychiatric Emergency Services

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Healthcare Providers & Systems/Behavioral Health & Substance Use Treatment

SECONDARYHLAFABAC

Outpatient Mental Health & Counseling Clinics

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Healthcare Providers & Systems/Ambulatory & Outpatient Care Centers

SECONDARYHLAFAEAH

Hospital-at-Home / Acute Care at Home Programs

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Healthcare Providers & Systems/Home Health & Hospice Providers

Keywords

• Psychiatric hospital services
• Mental health care
• Addiction treatment programs
• Child and adolescent psychiatry
• Gerontopsychiatric care

Headquarters

HQ city

Merelbeke-Melle

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Healthcare Services Revenue: KARUS operates under the Belgian health insurance system (RIZIV). All physicians affiliated with KARUS apply convention tariffs (conventietarieven) and do not charge honorarium supplements. Patients are covered through the Belgian public health insurance system. The organization provides psychiatric hospital care, residential treatment, and outpatient services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Karus is a Belgian non-profit psychiatric hospital operating two campuses (Merelbeke-Melle and Gent) that delivers multidisciplinary, recovery-oriented mental health care across the entire lifespan. It provides residential, day, ambulatory, and mobile crisis treatment through specialized care programs covering children/youth psychiatry, young adults, general psychiatry, crisis care, anxiety/mood disorders, personality disorders, psychosis, addiction, elderly psychiatry, and a mother-baby unit. Services are billed under RIZIV convention tariffs through the Belgian public health insurance system, with all physicians applying standard rates and no honorarium supplements.

Product overview

KARUS is a psychiatric hospital providing comprehensive mental health care organized as a multi-campus facility with specialized care programs. The organization operates two main campuses (Campus Gent and Campus Merelbeke-Melle) offering residential, day treatment, and ambulatory care across multiple specialized departments. The core care programs include: Jovo and Dam for youth and young adults (ages 6-25), Kasteelplus for addiction care, Dageraad and Prisma for psychosis care, Hestia for gerontopsychiatry, High Intensive Care (HIC) for crisis situations, and Tendens for sheltered housing. Additional services include mobile teams (MOBiLteam and Mobile Crisis Team), first-line psychological care, and a shared electronic patient record system. The organization also provides living accommodations (Wonen) and activation programs (Activering) as part of its multifunctional trajectories.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• De Kaap Child and adolescent psychiatric care for children and youth between 6 and 18 years with serious psychiatric problems, offering residential admission, day treatment for school refusal, and crisis services.
• Branding (Forensic child psychiatric department) Forensic child psychiatric department treating boys and girls between 12 and 18 years with psychiatric problems and a legal status from youth court, offering long-term residential treatment, short-term relapse admission, and crisis services.
• Jovo Treatment program for young adults between 17 and 23 years with adjustment, mood, or anxiety problems, youth with threatened personality development, or those who are stuck in the transition to adulthood due to psychiatric problems.
• Dam Addiction care program for youth between 15 and 25 years with problems related to illegal drugs, possibly combined with alcohol and/or medication issues.
• Hestia Open admission and treatment department for gerontopsychiatry for persons older than 65 years, offering observation, diagnosis, and short-term treatment with a multidisciplinary approach.
• Prisma Care program for patients with psychotic or bipolar disorders with recurring patterns of illness episodes or persistent, severe problems, focusing on reorientation toward quality life in society.
• Dageraad Treatment program for adolescents from 15 to 23 years with psychotic problems and adults with psychotic vulnerability and relatively short illness history, offering residential, day treatment, and aftercare.
• Kasteelplus Alcohol and/or medication addiction treatment program offering ambulatory group guidance, day treatment, and residential treatment, with family involvement and aftercare to prevent relapse.
• High Intensive Care (HIC) Recovery-supportive care, treatment, and protection for adults in serious psychiatric crisis situations requiring a protected admission setting.
• Tendens - Initiatief Beschut Wonen Sheltered housing initiative for adults with long-term psychiatric vulnerability who do not need hospital admission but cannot yet live fully independently, offering group housing, individual studios, or support in their own living environment.
• MOBiLteam Mobile Support and Guidance in Living Environment team providing accompaniment and treatment for people with severe and long-term psychiatric vulnerability in their own living environment, targeting 18-65 year olds.
• Mobiel Crisisteam (MCT) Mobile crisis team providing interventions in the living environment of adults (18+) in acute psychiatric crisis, offering short-term support up to one month.
• Eerstelijnspsychologische zorg First-line psychological care providing accessible psychological support at the primary care level.

Quantifiable outcome

• Shared patient dossier implementation increases patient participation and reduces suspicion in patients with borderline characteristics

Named customers1 record

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Het PAKTcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHet PAKT is a network of healthcare providers and facilities in the Gent-Eeklo-Vlaamse Ardennen region working to improve and make regional mental health care more accessible. KARUS contributes mobile teams (MOBiLteam and Mobile Crisis Team) that support adults with psychiatric conditions at home. The network serves adults 18+ in acute psychiatric crisis or with severe and long-term mental health vulnerabilities.
• RADARcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRADAR is the mental health network for children and youth in East Flanders. KARUS participates in the Mobiel Care Team (Mobile Care Team) in collaboration with RADAR, providing intensive pre- and post-care through mobile outreach services for children and youth with complex problems and their context.
• UZ GentminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UZ Gent for the Mobiel Crisisteam Gent Zuid (Mobile Crisis Team Gent Zuid). Dr. Luk Beelaert serves as policy psychiatrist together with colleagues from UZ Gent in this mobile crisis team.
• Zorgcircuit AlcoholminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKasteelplus works intensively together with other facilities within the Gent addiction care network (Zorgcircuit Alcohol) to ensure continuity of care.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• GGZ inGeest: Major Dutch mental health provider affiliated with VU/UMC Amsterdam offering psychiatric and addiction services across age groups; comparable program scope to KARUS within a public-funded system.
• Parnassia Groep: Largest Dutch mental health provider offering integrated psychiatric and addiction care across the Netherlands; comparable in multi-program breadth but at substantially larger scale and broader geographic footprint.
• Universitair Psychiatrisch Centrum KU Leuven: Academic psychiatric center at KU Leuven providing specialized psychiatric care and research-driven programs; broader in research and subspecialty depth than KARUS but similar in multi-program inpatient/ambulatory model.

Regional players

• UZ Gent: Ghent university hospital with a department of psychiatry; an academic referral partner of KARUS (documented mobile crisis team collaboration) and a partial competitor for ambulatory and complex psychiatric cases in the same region.
• AZ Maria Middelares Gent: General hospital in Gent with psychiatric liaison services; competes for ambulatory psychiatric referrals in the East Flanders region but lacks KARUS's specialized residential psychiatric hospital scope.

Direct peers

• PC Sint-Jan Baptist: Psychiatric center in Zelzate, East Flanders, operating two campuses with multi-specialty mental health programs; one of KARUS's closest geographic peers within the same provincial catchment.
• PZ Heilig Hart: Psychiatric hospital in Ieper offering inpatient and ambulatory psychiatric care across age groups; comparable Flemish PZ with similar RIZIV-funded operating model.
• PC Sint-Amandus: Belgian psychiatric hospital (PC) operating residential and ambulatory mental health services in Flanders; directly comparable to KARUS as a regional vzw psychiatric provider under the same RIZIV reimbursement framework.
• PZ Zoete Nood Gods: Belgian psychiatric hospital (Lede) providing multi-program mental health services including child/youth, adult, and elderly psychiatry; directly comparable to KARUS's full-lifespan program structure.
• PZ Sint-Norbertus: Psychiatric hospital in Duffel providing multi-program mental health care in a vzw structure; comparable to KARUS in scope, regulatory model, and target population.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/KARUSvzw
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/karusvzw
• Instagraminstagram.com/karusvzw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Karus