Disabled doctor's offices required

Disability associations are calling for more accessible medical practices

07/20/2012

Numerous medical practices in Germany are, according to the handicapped associations, not accessible for disabled people. Often only minimum standards such as the installation of a disabled parking space would be complied with. Actual accessibility for all disabled people, however, ensure the fewest medical practices, so the criticism Bundeskompetenzzentrum barrier free (BKB).

In view of the existing deficits, the Federal Competence Center Accessibility as an association of 15 social and disability associations has called for the establishment of additional barrier-free medical practices. It is wheelchair accessible by no means automatically equate with barrier-free. Hannelore Loskill, board member of the BKB, criticized the news agency „DAPD“ the grievances in the accessibility of disabled medical practices and advocated a nationwide action plan to improve the accessibility in medical practices.

150,000 non-disabled medical practices
The BKB expert not only has accessibility for wheelchair users in mind, but also disabled access for people with other impairments, such as the blind or the deaf. Although most clinics or practices declared to be accessible for the disabled are adequately equipped for wheelchair users, people with visual impairments still face considerable difficulties, Loskill explained. Related to all forms of disability can be found throughout Germany „no region that could be said to have barrier-free medical practices“, so the criticism of the BKB board member. As reported by the associations for disabled people, the list of physicians of the Foundation Health in Germany lists around 68,000 doctors who have at least partially designed their practices for disabled patients. However, the experts of the BKB criticize that in part only the minimum requirements, such as a disabled parking space, are complied with. Comprehensive accessibility is often not guaranteed. According to the Ärzteverzeichnis der Stiftung Gesundheit, around 152,000 practices are not handicapped accessible or the doctors have not provided any information

Accessibility for all disabled people
According to information from the BKB, it is not sufficient for the establishment of more handicapped-accessible medical practices if the practices can be reached at ground level or with a lift. Accessibility must also apply to visually impaired and deaf people. For example, visually impaired people often find it difficult to find the elevator at all if it is made of glass. Afterwards, they are usually given a form to fill out in their hands at the first visit to the doctor, which they can not fill out on their own. If the people point out, they often become „not very friendly“, criticized Hannelore Loskill.

Accessibility a spongy term
According to the disabled associations, the unclear use of the term makes it difficult „Accessibility“ The choice of appropriate medical practices is unnecessary for people with physical disabilities. Because indeed they say „sole statement barrier-free actually nothing“ on the accessibility of a doctor's office for disabled people, explained Hannelore Loskill. The term is interpreted too differently for this purpose. In the opinion of the expert, a clear distinction as to which types of disabilities a doctor's practice has been set up would be much more helpful. In order to ensure that doctors who describe their practice as handicapped-accessible comply with this, the information would also need to be regularly inspected or confirmed by certification.

Problems with accessibility in medical practices continue to increase
In general, accessibility is an increasingly important topic in everyday life, not least because of demographic change or the progressive aging of society. All the more regrettable, therefore, that in the medical practices the desirable standards are often not achieved. According to Hannelore Loskill, the problem threatens to be exacerbated in the future, since on the one hand more people with age-related physical disabilities come to the practices and on the other hand more doctors are retiring. This could just be the doctors' offices, „which are already located on the ground floor barrier-free“, so loskill. (Fp)

Picture: Albrecht E. Arnold