Malteser Hilfsdienst, founded jointly by the Order of Malta and the Caritas Association in 1953, is one of the largest social organisations in Germany and, with Malteser International, our mission is not only cross-confessional but also cross-border. With a network of around 95,000 dedicated volunteers and full-time staff, we embody compassion and solidarity in the service of those in need, regardless of their origin, faith, gender, sexual orientation or world view.
Our ethos revolves around recognising people's needs and meeting them with empathy and closeness while remaining politically independent and neutral. Malteser International is active in the health and social sector at over 700 locations and offers help in various areas. Our wide-ranging commitments and services include social volunteering, first aid training and care for the elderly and sick, as well as rescue services, transport services and civil protection.
Malteser Hilfsdienst has been conducting its own work in the field of civil security research as part of various research projects since 2019. Until then, Malteser Hilfsdienst was active as an associated partner in various projects. The WuKAS project, completed in 2021, on occupational safety when deploying spontaneous helpers marked the start of active research. Building on these results, KatHelfer-PRO was launched in 2023, a project dedicated to the digitalisation of processes for the deployment of spontaneous helpers. Under the leadership of T-Systems, a technical tool is being developed together with other partners in a practical manner and based on current socio-technical standards, which enables spontaneous helpers to provide their support in a low-threshold manner in several ways and facilitates simple coordination and planning of help on the organisational side. The latest joint project deFenSio, led by Malteser Hilfsdienst, aims to increase the resilience of critical infrastructures in the healthcare sector, in particular by improving the information security awareness of full-time and volunteer staff.
