Hospitals are demanding more money

Joint resolution presented for quality assurance hospital financing

09/05/2014

The hospitals as well as the Federal Council of Physicians and the German Nursing Council are calling for a reform of hospital financing by the federal and state governments. As stated in a resolution presented on Thursday in Berlin, this is necessary to meet the growing demands for quality, patient safety and medical performance in the clinics. So far, more and more clinics could no longer cover their running costs.

Many hospitals faced with absolutely insufficient investment funds
In a resolution presented Thursday in Berlin, the German Hospital Association, the German Medical Association and the German Nursing Council, together with other associations (including Diakonie, Caritas), demand improved financial resources for the hospitals. The aim is therefore, the „[...] to provide hospital financing on a need-based and calculable basis“, to meet the growing demands on medical performance in clinics, quality and patient safety. This is necessary according to the three top associations, because more and more hospitals could not cover their running costs and would „faced with absolutely insufficient investment funds“ see.

Insufficient investment financing must be ended
As the managing director of the hospital company, Georg Baum, announced, over the last seven years a personnel cost gap of 3.5 billion euros and an investment gap of at least 3 billion euros have developed. Accordingly, the appeal of the associations would be „Emergency and wake-up call“, which should encourage policymakers to improve the funding of clinic costs and „the absolutely insufficient investment financing“ to end. Otherwise, both quality and patient safety are at risk, Baum warns, „even more rationalization is not possible, the reserves have been exhausted. If 30 - 50 percent of the houses are in the red, something is wrong with the system!“

Employees in the 2017 hospitals dissatisfied
As a result, the mood in the 2017 hospitals was dampened, which would total 1.1 million employees „[...] dissatisfied on the bottom line. Work consolidation, lack of time and pressure to perform characterize the workplace“, said the President of the German Medical Association, Professor Frank Ulrich Montgomery. Therefore, a reform is also indispensable in his view: „Good medical care is not available for free. If policy calls for a quality offensive in hospital care, then it must also provide quality financing for the inpatient sector.“ Accordingly, according to the President of the German Nursing Council, Andreas Westerfellhaus, a good supply is possible only with a better staffing: „We need more money for nurses and midwives in the hospitals. This has already been said a lot. Now finally action must follow“, so Westerfellhaus.

Limits of economic principles must be adhered to
Moreover, according to the resolution, it is necessary, „to strengthen the peculiarities of the hospital sector as a medical-social service of general interest“, so the appeal of the associations to the federal-state working group. In particular, it is important to adhere to the limits of economic principles in health care, because discount, price and admission competitions are „incompatible with the goals of humane and socially responsible medical care.“ According to the resolution, hospitals spend billions each year on hospital investment financing. Accordingly, the compensation through additional federal funds is one of the most urgent measures here, and the investment fund originally provided for in the coalition negotiations should also be made available. For CDU and SPD had planned a fund in the amount of 500 million euros in the first draft of the contract, so hospitals can be converted according to SPD parliamentary group vice mayor Karl Lauterbach in local utilities such as retirement homes or medical care centers. In addition, it is generally planned to pay the clinics more for quality in the future, according to Lauterbach opposite the "Rheinische Post": „We will change the needs planning of hospitals and the payment of their services in such a way that quality will play the decisive role in the future.“

GKV-Spitzenverband warns against the conservation of unneeded houses
Meanwhile, the German Association of Statutory Health Insurance (GKV) warned again that additional money should not be used to save unnecessary houses or stations. „Germany has far too many hospital beds and hospital locations in an international comparison, without the patients would benefit from it in the form of an above-average quality of care, "said the Deputy Spokeswoman of the GKV-Spitzenverbandes, Ann Marini, to the „dpa“. For Baum and Montgomery a "defamation of hospitals and their services“. Here, the cash registers would promise financial benefits, which in the end but at the expense of the patient go.