23 July 2026
Summary
At Fenrishus, children and young people with life-limiting and complex disabilities are given the opportunity to live a meaningful and joyful life — supported by a dedicated team of professionals who integrate health, care, and pedagogy under one roof. Through an interdisciplinary and palliative approach, Fenrishus provides 24-hour specialised care, focusing on communication, development, and family inclusion. This model of integrated, compassionate practice demonstrates how healthcare and social services can work together to create the best possible life for some of society’s most vulnerable children.
Organisation: Fenrishus, Specialised Social Services for Children and Young People, Central Denmark Region
Context/ Social issues addressed
Fenrishus addresses the complex needs of children and young people with multiple and severe functional disabilities, many of whom live with life-threatening or life-limiting conditions. Their needs span across healthcare, education, and social care, often overwhelming families and traditional service systems. The facility provides both residential and respite care, relieving families who cannot meet the extensive daily care demands alone. Fenrishus also supports families through periods of grief, crisis, and loss, ensuring that parents, siblings, and relatives remain close to their child and are supported by staff throughout all stages — including the terminal phase.
Objectives
- To provide holistic, person-centred and palliative care that enhances the quality of life for children and young people with complex and life-limiting conditions.
- To integrate healthcare, pedagogical and therapeutic approaches in a coherent, interdisciplinary framework.
- To involve and support families as active partners in care, ensuring emotional, practical and relational inclusion.
Activities
Fenrishus offers 24-hour care for children and young people aged 0–26 years with complex functional disabilities and medical needs. The facility includes 13 residential places for children, 4 for young adults, 4 respite-care places, and a specialised kindergarten for 7 children.
The children and young people require assistance with all daily activities, including medication, nutrition (mostly via feeding tubes), mobility, personal hygiene, and sleep regulation. Care is planned and delivered through interdisciplinary teams that include social workers, nurses, physiotherapists, psychomotor therapists, music therapists, and occupational therapists.
Palliative care is a central element, ensuring relief from suffering and the best possible life, even in terminal phases. Staff are trained to recognise and respond to subtle signals and communication cues, as many children are non-verbal. Structured daily routines, sensory regulation, and communication support are based on recognised frameworks such as Neuro-Affective Developmental Psychology (NAU), the Low Arousal Approach, and Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC/ASK).
Families are welcomed as part of the Fenrishus community. Parents are involved in all decisions, siblings and grandparents are invited to special family days, and staff provide emotional and practical support to help families focus on creating positive memories.
Music therapy plays an essential role in everyday life, promoting well-being, emotional expression, and interaction. The interdisciplinary approach ensures continuity of care, professional reflection, and an integrated focus on both medical and emotional needs.
Outcomes
Children and young people experience higher well-being, comfort, and stability despite complex health conditions.
Parents and families report feeling safe, supported, and involved in decisions and daily life.
Staff collaboration across disciplines leads to coordinated, holistic care and professional learning.
Fenrishus has become a regional and national reference point for integrated palliative and developmental care for children and youth.
Evaluation is based on regular interdisciplinary reviews, family feedback, and external audits from the Region Midtjylland quality system
Funding Source: Local Government Funds
Comments and tips
Fenrishus is a highly specialised service built on a paediatric palliative care approach that seeks to relieve physical, psychological, social, and existential suffering — not only for the child, but for the whole family. While the main focus is, of course, on the children and young people, this approach inherently includes parents and relatives, offering both inclusion and relief according to each family’s unique needs.
The work at Fenrishus is inherently interdisciplinary, as the complexity of each child’s condition requires close collaboration across professions. Each child or young person is supported by a dedicated contact team consisting of a pedagogue, a nurse, and members of the therapy group, ensuring continuity, coherence, and shared professional responsibility.
Music also plays a distinctive role in the everyday life at Fenrishus. The centre has developed a music strategy that brings singing and musical interaction into daily care routines and social activities. Twice a week, the music therapist fills the common room with sound and song, inviting children, young people, and staff to pause and connect through music. Several times a year, concerts are arranged for families — offering moments of presence, emotion, and shared joy between children, parents, and siblings.
Organisations wishing to learn from Fenrishus’ practice should focus on combining professional specialisation with emotional presence, ensuring that interdisciplinary teamwork, family involvement, and creative approaches such as music are woven into the structure of everyday care. This balance between technical expertise and human connection is what truly defines Fenrishus.