Berlin - Hospitals fear overuse of emergency rooms
Doctors in private practice in Berlin have recently been given the choice to treat fewer people - as a result, Berlin hospitals fear that emergency rooms will be overloaded. "The emergency departments are already reaching the limits of their capacity," said Marc Schreiner, Managing Director of the Berlin Hospital Association.
If doctors' surgeries offer fewer appointments, it could happen that more people go to the emergency room with a problem. However, these are responsible for medical emergencies, explained Schreiner. "GPs, specialists or the on-call practices are there for all other health complaints. This commitment must be expanded and not curtailed."
Since the beginning of the year, the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KV) in Berlin has allowed medical practices to take on ten percent fewer treatment cases and still receive the same fee. The KV wants to exert pressure on the health insurance companies. It criticizes the fact that doctors are not being paid enough for their services.
The KV Berlin's decision to reduce medical services is only a recommendation. "It is not yet possible to estimate how many practices will follow suit. A valid statement will be possible after the end of the first quarter," the KV told the German Press Agency on request. Wolfgang Kreischer, Chairman of the Berlin and Brandenburg Association of General Practitioners, confirmed on inquiry that there may be fewer appointments in some GP surgeries since the beginning of the year.
The emergency departments could come under pressure as a result and become a "stopgap for association policy demands", criticized Schreiner. The fact that there have been fewer staff in the eleven KV emergency practices since January and therefore limited opening hours could make matters worse. In addition, fewer doctors have recently been working in the medical on-call service.
Press release KV Berlin Press release Berliner Krankenhausgesellschaft KV Berlin on changes to the on-call service
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In response to fewer available appointments in doctors' surgeries, more individuals may seek emergency care at local hospitals in Berlin, further straining their already capacity-strained emergency rooms. Concurrently, these facilities are primarily designed for addressing medical emergencies, as noted by Marc Schreiner, Managing Director of the Berlin Hospital Association.
Source: www.stern.de
