Barmer GEK publishes hospital report

Hospital Report 2013: Number of inpatient treatments for colorectal cancer in decline

07/24/2013

Although hospital stays in 2012 were characterized by a reduction in the length of stay in the clinics and by the continued high level of treatment. This resulted in the hospital report of the health insurance Barmer GEK. A positive development can be seen in the treatment of colorectal cancer, which was the focus of the report. The number of colorectal cancer patients who received inpatient therapy fell by around 21 percent from 2005 to 2012.

Hospital report shows decrease in length of stay in inpatient hospital stays
„Unchanged continues a trend observed since the nineties. On average, hospital stays in 2012 are also shorter than in the previous year, "explains Prof. Dr. Eva Maria Bitzer from the Institute for Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Systems Research (ISEG), whose author team was instrumental in preparing the hospital report In 1992, the average length of in-patient hospitalization dropped to 8.3 days in 2012. The shorter duration of treatment for cardiovascular diseases, in particular, was responsible for the decline in hospital stay, according to the report In 2012, treatment duration was reduced by 44 percent, while inpatient hospital stay due to mental illness increased by 67 percent (assuming an unchanged gender and age structure)..

There were hardly any changes in the frequency of treatment compared to previous years. Both effects, however, caused the overall length of stay to decrease slightly.

Dr. Rolf-Ulrich Schlenker calls for a reform in the area of ​​hospitals. „We need to get a grip on the quantity problem by preventing medically unnecessary treatments. We also want to promote quality assurance in the hospital and find a solution to the fact that the federal states are increasingly withdrawing from the financing of hospital investments“, explains the deputy CEO of Barmer GEK. In view of the forthcoming election to the Bundestag, the health fund wishes the new political leaders more freedom for patient-oriented care. These include, among other things, the ability to conduct direct negotiations with clinics on predictable services, the expansion of integrated care models for the networking of outpatient and inpatient care and the creation of incentives for quality-assured care services.

According to hospital report significantly fewer hospital stays for colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers in Germany with about 69,000 new cases annually. The chances of a cure depend largely on how early the cancer is detected and treated. One year after the initial hospitalization, around 20 percent of the patients died, and five years after the hospital stay, it was about 45 percent.

According to Barmer GEK, the number of in-patient treatments for colorectal cancer declined by 21 percent from 2005 to 2012. According to the report, the number of chemotherapies and radiation treatments is also decreasing and is increasingly being carried out by established physicians. „This positive development suggests that targeted prevention measures are now used to detect colon cancer so early that it is less likely to need hospital treatment, "said Schlenker, adding that further measures to prevent colorectal cancer are planned. „Actually, from 2017, it is planned to routinely invite to check-ups. Barmer GEK is expected to do this sooner, and we want to try out an individualized invitation procedure in Bavaria, "says Schlenker.

At the same time, the number of gentler laparoscopic surgeries has increased significantly from five to 15 percent in the last seven years. The case costs have also increased. „The costs per person affected for the treatment of colorectal cancer in the hospital increased by 21 percent between 2005 and 2012, from an average of 9,316 to 11,314 euros, "explains Bitzer.

This year's Hospital Report also includes a survey of around 800 patients treated for colorectal cancer last year. Approximately one-third (34.8 percent) experienced complications with therapy. Most of them experienced wound healing disorders (15.1 percent), followed by bowel obstruction (3.9 percent). In addition, many suffer from gastrointestinal symptoms as well as fatigue and sleep disturbances one year after the hospital stay. Also, shame and social limitations due to bowel surgery are experienced by many patients. (Ag)