More doctors But no shortage of medicine?

Despite an increase in the number of working doctors, the threat of a shortage of doctors?

04/14/2014

Almost 360,000 doctors in Germany are now available to care for the patients. According to the German Medical Association (BÄK), the number of working physicians rose by 2.5 percent in the past year. At first glance, a quite surprising news, given the repeated reports of the impending medical shortage. In the current BÄK press release, its President, Frank Ulrich Montgomery, explained why, despite the growing number of working doctors, there is still a shortage of doctors.

„The shortage of physicians and the lack of medical hours are no longer a prognosis, but have long been reality in many regions of Germany“, emphasized the BÄK president. Montgomery supplemented, „that this shortcoming will become even more acute in the next few years.“ In view of the increase in working physicians by about 8,500 to 357,252 last year, initially a somewhat startling statement. But the BÄK pointed that out, „That more doctors are needed today than just because of the increase in treatment intensity in an aging society.“ Thus, the number of outpatient treatment cases in Germany between 2004 and 2012 increased by around 136 million and inpatients by around 1.8 million to 18.6 million cases. Furthermore, medical progress has opened up numerous new possibilities for intervention. For these examinations and therapy methods, as well as for the increasing specialization of medicine, significantly more personnel are needed, explained Montgomery.

More and more doctors part-time
According to the BÄK, the growing number of working doctors is also put into perspective against the background of the fact that more and more doctors are working part-time. Here grow one „Generation of doctors who attaches more importance to the work-life balance and who increasingly decides to work part-time.“ Citing the figures of the Federal Statistical Office, the German Medical Association reports that in 2011, 54,000 physicians already worked part-time, while in 2001 the number was still 31,000. Montgomery explained that „Young people with a high level of education are rightfully no longer willing to give up their lifestyle, their quality of life and their workers' rights at the gates of hospitals and medical practices.“

Aging of the medical profession
Another problem that will lead to a worsening of the shortage of doctors in the future, according to the BÄK, is the increasing average age of the medical profession. More and more doctors would say goodbye to retirement. Their number increased in 2013 by 3.8 percent to 72,540. According to the statement of the BÄK president, the statistics are taken here „clearly that the demographic development has also affected the medical profession.“ For years, the average age of doctors is increasing. The proportion of over 59-year-old doctors has now risen to 15.6 percent.

Make working conditions for doctors more attractive
To counter the impending shortage of physicians, the German Medical Association called for an expansion of study places in human medicine and a more attractive design of the work with accompanying measures such as the reduction of overtime, a relief of bureaucracy, flexible working hours and more offers for childcare. Go here „nothing less than the motivation of a whole generation of young doctors“, stressed Montgomery. (Fp)