Hospital.Help

Berlin For the politically targeted launch in early 2025, the electronic patient file (ePA) must be fully functional and usable. This is what the delegate assembly of the 45th General Practitioners’ Day demanded of the legislator today. The ePA must be technically sophisticated enough to be able to cope with everyday practice – this particularly applies to fast and reliable access times.

In addition, all citizens must be adequately informed about the functionality and the advantages and disadvantages of the ePA by the planned nationwide launch date on February 15, 2025, the resolution emphasizes. Informing patients about the ePA in the middle of the infection season is neither the responsibility of the practices nor is it feasible in terms of time.

Nicola Buhlinger-Gpfarth, co-federal chairwoman of the Association of General Practitioners, spoke ironically in this context of a very well chosen date.

In view of the existing burden on GP practices, Markus Beier, co-federal chairman of the Association of General Practitioners, warned that the launch of the ePA in winter could really blow up in the healthcare system’s face. The ePA will also not meet the communicated requirements at the start.

The delegates’ resolution states on this aspect that the contents as well as the associated restrictions of the medication list must be communicated to the patients as well as to the doctors.

Structured data required

In the medium term, structured data is essential for an ePA that really supports medical care. This is the only way the ePA can develop its full potential and become an indispensable tool in everyday care.

In another resolution, the Association of General Practitioners is calling on the legislature to abolish the existing sanctions against practices within the framework of the telematics infrastructure (TI). As long as hospitals or the public health service (GD) themselves do not meet basic requirements such as the integration of KIM (communication in the medical sector) or the implementation of the ePA, it is completely absurd to sanction contract doctors.

In addition to digitization, other current problem areas and legislative proposals were also discussed at the General Practitioners’ Day. Among other things, the delegate assembly called on the federal government to avoid the introduction of duplicate structures as part of the planned emergency reform.

The establishment of a 24/7 telemedical on-call service and an on-site emergency service is clearly rejected. Instead, what is needed is a resource-saving, mandatory management of patients to the appropriate level of care.

There was also a resolution on the recently concluded negotiations on the reference value between the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) and the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds. It is important to critically examine the legal framework for the relevant negotiations and to develop proposals on how a targeted negotiation should be designed in the future to adequately take into account the increase in costs in the practices.

Furthermore, the joint self-administration at federal and state level was called upon to take measures to ensure that GP positions are filled exclusively by doctors who offer comprehensive GP care. If necessary, the legislature is also called upon to take regulatory measures.

Implementing the Master Plan 2020

Also in connection with securing future primary care, the delegates criticized the fact that, contrary to all announcements, the implementation of the Master Plan 2020 of the Licensing Regulations has not yet been implemented.

The federal government, state governments and the medical faculties of the universities are called upon to bring a greater focus on the reality of healthcare and the frequency of illnesses into the training of medical students. The same applies to the chambers with regard to further medical training.

Here, Beier criticised, the state governments represented the greatest obstacle. They should live up to their financial responsibility instead of publicly complaining that primary care is collapsing. © aha/aerzteblatt.de