End of the practice fee transfer further useful

Referral by the family doctor despite the omission of the practice fee makes sense

01/08/2013

Since the beginning of the year, patients no longer have to pay the doctor a practice fee of ten euros per quarter. Even when visiting a specialist this package is now gone, which is why the transfer by the family doctor from a financial point of view makes no sense. However, patients should still not refrain from the referral by the family doctor, advises the Independent Patient Counseling Germany (UPD).

According to the UPD, referrals by the family doctor are quite useful. Because „if you can refer to specialist doctors, the family doctor keeps a better overview and can arrange the treatment accordingly“, stressed Rainer Sbrzesny from the UPD. That way you can „Avoid mismatched medications and unnecessary multiple examinations“, so the message of UPD on. Although, with a few exceptions, the specialist visit - as well as before abolition of the practice fee - without transfer possible, but from a medical point of view, the experts advise a previous visit to the family doctor. This could refer the patient in doubt to a suitable specialist.

No referral for the specialist visit required
Until the end of last year, patients had to re-pay the practice fee of ten euros per quarter for each specialist visit they completed without referral from their family doctor. For this reason alone, a previous visit to the family doctor and a corresponding referral for the patients made sense so far. Now, after the end of the practice fee many patients ask the question, „whether you need a referral for the specialist“, explained Sbrzesny. Nothing has changed here since last year, the expert continued. Even so far, patients without referral from their family doctor were able to see a specialist. However, in this case again ten euros practice fee due. Although these costs are now gone, but from a medical point of view, the referral by the family doctor offer significant benefits.

Referral by the family doctor from a medical point of view makes sense
GPs are usually well-informed about the symptoms of their patients and can provide important advice when selecting specialists. They also keep a better overview of the health of their patients if a referral is obtained before the specialist visit. In addition, the treatment can be aligned accordingly and multiple examinations and discrepancies in drug prescriptions could be avoided in this way according to the UPD. In some exceptional cases, such as with special medical specialists or participants in the family doctor model, the visit to a specialist is not possible anyway without prior referral.

Specialist appointments can also be made without a referral
Some patients have significant mistrust of their family doctor as they suspect treatment errors or feel that the family doctor is merely refering them to specialists who have so-called "catch premiums". The survey conducted by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds in May of this year, which has found that fighter premiums are not uncommon among physicians and also holds a considerable potential for corruption, certainly did not contribute to building trust here. However, for patients such cases, it is possible to make an appointment with the desired specialist on their own initiative. In addition, they are in such distrust of their family doctor urgently recommend a change of family doctor. (Fp)

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Picture: Matthias Preisinger