Patients will have to act in an emergency in the future
Register for an appointment at the weekend suddenly having a stumbling heart or a stabbing pain, many go directly to the emergency room. They are often overcrowded. How should patients proceed in the future?
With the healthcare reform in Germany, things are expected to change for patients. For acute symptoms, the emergency room is currently the first point of contact for many, especially on weekends or in the evening. There, stress and long waiting times prevail. Future patients are to be better navigated through the healthcare maze. According to the planned cabinet decision, the healthcare reform by Health Minister Karl Lauterbach is to be discussed in parliament. As for the insured:
Where should one go in case of an emergency in the future?
Two innovations are being introduced for this: In emergency call centers, patients will receive an initial assessment under a nationwide number. They can be reached at 116 117. Nationwide, so-called integrated emergency centers are to be built, some of which will also be for children and adolescents. In the emergency centers, the emergency room of the hospital is combined with an emergency practice.
What should be done when one fears one must be treated immediately?
There will be several options in the future, but the telephone consultation is to be strongly expanded. At 116 117, one should receive an initial assessment in 75% of cases within three minutes, otherwise it should not take much longer. Patients can be directed to the nearest emergency center by the experts on the phone. If the case turns out to be an emergency, it should be redirected to 112, so that an ambulance can be dispatched. Telemedicine doctors can be consulted for an assessment. The telephone consultation is expected to prevent unnecessary emergency room visits. The emergency call centers will be connected to appointment scheduling offices: Doctor's visits can then be directed to the phone. Anyone who lands at the emergency center via 116 117 should get there faster.
What is special about the emergency centers?
At the reception desk of the integrated emergency centers (INZ), there will be an initial assessment: Where should those in need go next - to the emergency room or a nearby emergency practice? Health Minister Lauterbach's declared goal: Patients should be treated there where it is best and fastest. The INZ should be distributed throughout the country so that at least one is always easily accessible. The opening hours of the attached emergency practices: open every evening until 9 pm - also on weekends and holidays.
What happens if the case is assessed as mild?
The doctor or nurse may deem a practice or clinic visit unnecessary based on telephone or video consultation. In such a case, an electronic prescription or an electronic sick note can be issued.
Why the reform?
Emergency rooms and emergency services are often at their limits. Every third person in an emergency room, according to the Health Ministry's assessment, could have been better treated in a practice. This is also due to the fact that many simply do not know what to do when they suddenly need medical help at night or on weekends. Many end up with the ambulance and eventually in the hospital.
What do the doctors say?
German Doctors' Association Warns of Reform Failure - Lacking Necessary Personnel, Parallel Structures Needed
The German Doctors' Association and German Medical Association warned against the failure of the reform - as there is a lack of necessary personnel, and "Parallel Structures" are to be established. The Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung (KBV) praised positive initiatives. The KBV, however, doubted the full feasibility due to a lack of personnel - including for the expansion of house calls.
Where do Health Insurances See Light and Shadow?
The health insurances praised the proposals - Stefanie Stoff-Ahnis, Deputy Chief of the GKV-Spitzenverband, said: "The Emergency Law contains many rightful starting points to improve the care for our insured persons." A warning to Lauterbach was also prepared by the health insurances: The health insurers' associations should not be faced with insoluble personnel problems. The planned new transparency was welcomed by Stoff-Ahnis: The obligation of the health insurers' associations to uniformly provide information about doctors' consultation hours on the internet nationwide.
Which Laws Does Lauterbach Still Have in the Cabinet?
Several bills from the Health Ministry are to be decided by the cabinet on this Wednesday. Different from today, kidney donations should be possible between two pairs crossing each other in the future. To strengthen preventive healthcare, a new federal authority is to start on January 1, 2025, the Federal Institute for Prevention and Clarification in Medicine (BIPAM). Parts of the Robert Koch Institute and the Federal Central Office for Health Education are to be integrated into it. And to drive digitalization in healthcare forward, the existing Gematik GmbH is to be developed into a Digital Agency.
- Under the proposed healthcare reform, patients with acute symptoms should consider contacting emergency call centers first, such as dialing 116 117.
- To navigate the healthcare system better, future patients will have access to nationwide integrated emergency centers, which combine hospital emergency rooms with emergency practices.
- In case of an emergency, the planned telephone consultation service aims to provide an initial assessment within three minutes, ultimately reducing unnecessary emergency room visits.
- At the integrated emergency centers (INZ), patients will undergo an initial assessment at the reception desk, determining whether they should visit the emergency room or a nearby emergency practice.
- If the case is deemed mild, the doctor or nurse may advise against a practice or clinic visit and issue an electronic prescription or sick note instead.
- According to health ministry assessments, many individuals who end up in emergency rooms could have been treated more appropriately in a practice, contributing to the overcrowding of emergency services.
- The German Doctors' Association and German Medical Association have expressed concerns about the reform's potential failure due to a lack of necessary personnel and the establishment of parallel structures.
- Stefanie Stoff-Ahnis, Deputy Chief of the GKV-Spitzenverband, praised the reform's proposals, but warned that health insurers' associations should not face insoluble personnel problems.
- Lauterbach's cabinet aims to pass several bills on Wednesday, including allowing kidney donations between crossing pairs and establishing a new Federal Institute for Prevention and Clarification in Medicine (BIPAM).
- To enhance digitalization in healthcare, the existing Gematik GmbH is to be transformed into a Digital Agency, helping the healthcare sector adapt to modern technologies and improved patient care.
