Majority of Germans do not often go to the doctor

Less average doctor visits than previously thought

19.03.2012

Few patients seem to drive the number of doctor visits up. This was shown by a response from the Federal Government to a small request from the Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen fraction. About 50 percent of all medical consultations are carried out by around 16 percent of patients. Quite a few even go to the doctor more than 40 times a year.

Minority of patients drives up number of doctor visits
Almost half of all doctor visits are undertaken by only 16 percent of patients. Some go to the doctor up to 40 times a year. The response of the Federal Ministry of Health to a small request from the Greens shows that the citizens of Germany as a whole are not as likely to go to the doctor as previously suspected. The practice fees were originally set up to increase the number of „unnecessary doctor consultations“ to lower. The calculus has not worked out until now, because the number of visits has hardly changed since then.

The Federal Ministry of Health bases its statement on an evaluation of the central institute for the Kassenärztliche supply in Germany (ZI). According to this analysis, 25 percent of all insured persons go to the doctor a maximum of four times a year. Another quarter claims at most ten times and a third quarter about 22 times the doctor in the current year. Twenty-five percent of the cash-desk patients who go to the doctor frequently visit their family doctor about 40 times a year. The data was calculated on the basis of all medical bills. This includes telephone consultations or the mere issuing of continuous drug prescriptions. A difference between the sexes was also visible: men go to the doctor on average 14 times and women 20 times. On average, every German goes about 17 times a year to the home or specialist.

In comparison with the international comparative data of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Germany is very far ahead. Because the data does not include multiple visits per year but only quarterly visits, the figure for Germany was 8.2. On average, the citizens of the OECD member states go to the doctor about 6.5 times per. Most often, the Japanese consult their doctor at a rate of 13.2 visits a year. The least people in Chile go to the doctor (1,8).

In addition to anxiety-stricken patients, long-term doctors include mainly people suffering from chronic diseases such as diabetes, getting an organ transplanted, having heart, circulation or cancer. The calculations show that the mean is influenced by a small group of patients with a high need for care, explained Dominik von Stillfried, Managing Director of the ZI. Will the numbers, on the other hand „considered isolated“, does this „to a misinterpretation of the supply situation“

Common reasons for doctor contacts
According to a study of patient data published by the Barmer GEK, the Germans are most likely to go to the doctor for cross or back pain (24 percent). Physicians are also frequently visited because of chronic diseases such as hypertension (26) or lipid metabolism disorders. High priority is given to respiratory diseases (18) and abdominal pain (10). It became clear that psychological suffering led to increased physician contacts compared to previous years. Depression or sleep disorders together account for about 15 percent (Physicians Report 2011).

Politicians demand abolition of practice fees
Meanwhile, the FDP calls for abolishing practice fees. Because the health insurance companies have generated billions in surplus last year, „insured persons should be allowed to participate in the surplus“, said the FDP parliamentary group leader Rainer Brüderle. The additional fees only lead to „a lot of trouble and bureaucracy“ and missed their original goal. Because CDU / CSU is against abolition, he proposes an alternative concept. Instead of a total abolition could „the practice fee be suspended for at least two to three years.“ In 2004, the fee was introduced to prevent unnecessary medical visits and to relieve the health insurance funds. The practice fees generate annual additional revenues of more than 2.8 billion euros for the health fund. The coffers are reluctant to forego the revenue.

„The FDP jumps on the media in this move and calls for the abolition of the practice fee“, criticizes Martina Bunge, health spokeswoman for the left. The demand was easy for the FDP, because the Union is against abolition. The Union could „do not attach a single argument“, to justify the practice fees. Above all, chronically ill and low-income people are disadvantaged by the practice fees, the politician. (Sb)

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