Bielefeld calls for more general practitioners and specialists: Resolution signed!

Bielefeld calls for more general practitioners and specialists: Resolution signed!

There is movement in the medical landscape in Bielefeld. Today, all city council factions signed a resolution that calls on the city administration to advocate for a fundamental revision of medical needs planning with the Westphalia-Lippe Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KVWL) and with health policy makers at the state and federal level. The aim of this joint approach is to enable more general practitioners and specialists with registered offices to establish themselves in the region in order to meet the growing medical needs of the population. Westfalen-Blatt reported that medical care in Bielefeld has come under pressure in recent years and measures are urgently needed.

Requirements planning is a crucial pillar of outpatient care. It determines the need for doctors and psychotherapists in the respective regions. The aim is to ensure comprehensive care and to avoid incorrect care. The basis is the requirements planning guidelines issued by the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA). According to the specifications of the KVWL KVWL, this guideline is implemented into concrete requirements plans in accordance with Section 99 SGB V. Here, 22 groups of doctors are combined into four levels of care, including family doctor and general specialist care.

Deficits in medical care

With a base ratio of 1,633 residents per family doctor, it shows that many regions, including Bielefeld, are underserved. From a supply level of 75 percent it is considered critical, while oversupply can only occur from values ​​of over 110 percent. The city faces the challenge of raising medical care to a sustainable level, especially in rural areas where there is often an acute shortage. According to the KVWL, the level of care is regularly checked and necessary measures are taken to improve it.

Another aspect that the resolution focuses on is the consideration of regional influencing factors. It is not enough to simply admit more doctors; Rather, the special needs of each region, as defined in the G-BA's co-supply concept, must be analyzed. KBV describes that more doctors are often needed in densely populated cities in order to provide adequate care for the surrounding area. When planning, it is crucial to understand these interrelationships and incorporate them into the needs analysis.

The goal of improved healthcare

Together, the Bielefeld city councilors are not only calling for an adjustment of the numbers, but also a pragmatic revision of the approaches to requirements planning. This is the only way to ensure that citizens will continue to receive good medical care in the future. The resolution is a first step in the right direction and shows that politicians are taking urgent health care issues seriously.

In addition to the resolution, care must be taken to ensure that the quality of medical services does not fall by the wayside. It is important to ensure a balance between the number of doctors and the quality of the services provided. Ultimately, the well-being of the population depends crucially on health care.

It remains exciting to see to what extent the city administration picks up the ball and takes concrete steps to improve medical care in Bielefeld.