Association: GPs are "clearly over the limit"

Health - Association: GPs are "clearly over the limit"

According to the Rhineland-Palatinate General Practitioners' Association, many GPs are currently overworked. Many cases of illness, many closed practices between the years and regionally underserved areas: Doctors are working "well above their capacity", the second chairwoman of the association, Heidi Weber, announced on Saturday in Bitburg in the Eifel region.

The reduced opening hours of the Bitburg on-call medical practice were also noticeable: it was already closed at night and was also not staffed on Friday afternoons, said GP Weber. The result: "The queue outside the practice door was almost endless." Most of the acute cases were respiratory infections.

Around half of the medical practices in the country are currently on vacation, and half of the remaining practices are often significantly understaffed due to illness. Information on whether and how many practices are on strike is not available from the association. "We need a decision in Germany to strengthen outpatient care, otherwise these teams will no longer be able to work," demanded Weber.

According to the State Investigation Office in Koblenz, there has been a significant increase in coronavirus, influenza and RSV pathogens in recent weeks. This is based on random samples from the state's own SURE surveillance project. According to the office, 40 GP and pediatric practices in Rhineland-Palatinate are taking part in this project.

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1. In Rhineland-Palatinate, Doctors from the General Practitioners' Association have expressed concern about the high number of cases of illness and the resulting overwork of GPs.
2. The GP Weber, speaking in Bitburg in the Eifel region, emphasized that many GPs are currently working "well above their capacity".
3. The reduced opening hours of the Bitburg on-call medical practice have been criticized by GP Weber, who noted that it was often closed at night and not staffed on Friday afternoons.
4. According to GP Weber, the result of these reduced hours was an "almost endless" queue outside the practice door, with most acute cases being respiratory infections.
5. A spokesperson from the State Investigation Office in Koblenz reported a significant increase in coronavirus, influenza, and RSV pathogens in recent weeks, based on random samples from GP and pediatric practices in Rhineland-Palatinate.
6. The Rheinland-Pfalz GP association is advocating for stronger outpatient care in Germany, warning that current teams will no longer be able to function under the current conditions if no action is taken.

Source: www.stern.de