Supporting Hospital Admission (The Role of Parents During Inpatient Admission)

During an inpatient stay, the child lives at a clinic for a period of time and receives round-the-clock care there. Child and adolescent psychiatry (KJP) typically deals with mental health crises: depression, an eating disorder, severe anxiety, or an acute risk to the child’s well-being. Specialists recommend an inpatient stay when outpatient appointments and day treatment are no longer sufficient and daily life is severely restricted. Depending on the nature of the disorder, the stay can last from weeks to months.

A team of doctors, nurses, therapists, and educators works together. Each child is assigned a primary therapist and receives a weekly schedule that includes school, therapy, meals, and free time. This structured routine provides many children with the stability they are currently unable to find at home.

The procedure depends on the child’s age and the ward. For younger children in physical medicine wards, a parent may stay with the child. Since 2005, this has been considered medically justified nationwide; since 2024, it has been permitted for children up to nine years of age without requiring separate documentation. The hospital receives a flat rate of 45 euros per day to cover the accompanying person’s room and board.

Things work differently in child and adolescent psychiatry. Here, children and adolescents generally sleep on the ward without their parents, because being away from their everyday home life is part of the treatment. For parents, this often means a sudden separation. It helps to ask specific questions in advance: What are the visiting hours? When can we call? When will the first family meeting take place? Who is the designated contact person?

Parents remain important, even when the child is sleeping somewhere else. The treatment team involves the family in the diagnostic process and therapy because the progress made must support daily life at home. Specifically, this means: regular family meetings with the primary therapist, arrangements for visits and phone calls, and later, stress tests on weekends during which the child practices what they’ve learned at home.

For many parents, letting go is the hardest part. For months, they’ve watched their child’s every mood and been there for every meal. Now, a team they barely know is taking over. Trust grows here through small steps: asking questions when something remains unclear, sharing observations from daily life, and sticking to agreements. It’s good to know about confidentiality. The team is not allowed to share everything a teenager says, unless there is a danger to the child or others.

After admission, many parents are plagued by troubling thoughts. Did I overlook something? Should I have acted sooner? Such feelings of guilt are common and say nothing about the quality of parenting. Mental illness results from many factors and can rarely be attributed to a single trigger.

Added to this is often exhaustion, as the period leading up to admission was frequently marked by constant stress and poor sleep. Some parents view hospitalization as an admission of failure and feel ashamed in front of family or friends. This shame can be addressed—whether in a family discussion or during individual counseling. Siblings also need attention now, because they are acutely aware of the tension at home.

Inpatient admission typically occurs through a referral from the child and adolescent psychiatry department or a pediatrician; in acute crises, it can also occur through the emergency room. In cases of immediate danger, such as suicidal thoughts, contact 112 or the nearest psychiatric hospital immediately.

Parents themselves can find support through parenting counseling centers, the hospital’s social services department, and self-help groups. Social services can also assist with questions regarding sick pay for children and coverage of costs. Support from someone like Rückenwind can help parents during this phase, help them make sense of conversations, and encourage them to focus on their own self-care. It is not a substitute for treatment. The diagnosis and the decision regarding inpatient admission are made exclusively by a child and adolescent psychiatry department or a medical or psychotherapeutic specialist.