Hospital reform: Pantazis warns of risks for rural clinics

Hospital reform: Pantazis warns of risks for rural clinics

The planned hospital reform, which many eyes are aimed at, is said to come into force at the turn of the year. Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) describes this measure as a "revolution", but Christos Pantazis, his party colleague and neurosurgeon from Braunschweig, sees it differently. He was active in the negotiations on the reform as a negotiator for the SPD and critically commented on Lauterbach's optimistic assessments.

At an event organized by Robin Mesarosch, another SPD member of the Bundestag, Pantazis came together with several specialist representatives, including the managing director of regional clinics. "It is high time for a reform," emphasized Pantazis. Numerous hospitals now have significant deficits of several million euros, which urgently requires a revision of the financing.

reserves as an important component

The current flat rate system that has existed since the early 2000s has led to increasing commercialization in healthcare, which has caused imbalance in the performance of many hospitals. Pantazis pointed out that lucrative areas benefit from the current regulation, while others mutate into a subsidy business. Numerous birth stations therefore had to close, while complex interventions are also carried out in smaller clinics that are actually not suitable for it.

Central to the reform, depending on their services offered. In the future, these budgets should make up 40 to 60 percent of the total financing, although the case flat rates are still preserved. While Lauterbach speaks of a nationwide revolution, Pantazis understands the reform as an adaptation of the existing system and a necessary realignment in order not to throw the entire approach overboard.

"I don't want to have a law that overwhelms," said Pantazis, who noted that the new performance groups are important to ensure the quality of the supply. In this way, departments that certain performance parameters do not fulfill would lose their financing. This fact provides concern, especially in rural areas, because a loss of such departments would have massive effects on medical care on site.

changes in the terminology

Another aspect of the reform concerns the structure of the hospitals. Pantazis explained that the leveling system, which was initially discussed, is not pursued. The term gives the impression that low levels stand for inferior treatment. He advised Lauterbach: "Karl, please do not use this term." Nevertheless, the classification of the hospitals is retained into different categories.

The managing directors of the Zollernalb clinics and the SRH clinic agreed to the need for a reform, but criticized the procedure that has so far been unclear. Gerhard Hinger from the Zollernalbkliniken pointed out that meaningful reforms need money and that there was a lack of budget errors. Under the current conditions, prices in health care could not simply increase, as would be the case in other sectors.

Hinger made it clear that politics had not adequately included experts in this reformatory process. The bureaucracy effort is also a central problem that has to be solved in order to improve more treatments from the hospital and improve the opportunities for outpatient treatments.

"The district of Sigmaringen has mastered many challenges, also experienced significant cuts," remarked Sven Schönfeld, the managing director of the SRH clinic, in alluding to the closures of the nearby hospitals in Bad Saulgau and Pfullendorf. It is crucial that patients do not have to accept long distances for treatment.

Pantazis admitted that a different approach to the reform would have been useful. An Enquete Commission could have included external experts in order to develop the best possible solutions. But the urgency of the situation had prompted politics to forego such well -founded steps.

On Thursday, October 17th, it will be checked whether the law in the Bundestag will be passed. The health committee has already given approval. The further development is eagerly awaited, especially since the effects of the reform on the hospital landscape in Germany could be far-reaching, such as www.schwaebische.de reported.