A nursing employee walks across a corridor in the corona intensive care unit of the Essen University Hospital.
Image: dpa
In healthcare, everyone wants to get the best out of themselves. But doctors and patients will have to step back if care is to continue to be guaranteed in the future.
IIn 2021, the healthcare system in Germany cost 474 billion euros. Experts assume that this year it will be more than 500 billion. This includes everything from headache pills you bought yourself to complicated heart surgery.
However, the large amount of money in the system does not mean that everyone is satisfied, on the contrary. Everyone is complaining: nursing staff, midwives, pharmacists, psychotherapists, but above all patients and doctors. Most of the time, it comes down to two things: money and time. Both are related. If there is enough money, doctors can devote themselves to their patients longer. If savings have to be made, then first there where the doctor’s work is least profitable, and that is often the patient consultations. The healthcare system has been under pressure for years due to an aging society. More and more people have to see their doctor regularly. This increases dissatisfaction on all sides. But which complaints are justified? And how can the problems be solved?