Health care networks in Germany: status quo and key success factors

Abstract

One third of all practicing physicians are currently working in one of the 400 German health care networks. These physicians' networks bring together GPs and specialists and cooperate with different partners, for example, nursing homes, hospitals, and self-help groups. To increase the quality and the efficiency of care and patient satisfaction by improving the collaboration and communication between physicians and other health care providers.The example of the accountable care organization "Gesundheitsnetz Qualität und Effizienz" (QuE; Health Quality and Efficiency Network) in Nuremberg is used to show that it is possible to achieve an increase in efficiency while providing above-average quality of care and achieving high patient satisfaction. Additionally, the article deals with the status quo, the core objectives, and the key activities of previous generations of health care networks. Quality indicators, satisfaction surveys, and economic parameters are the basis for measuring and representing the above-average performance of physicians' networks. Regional health care networks offer an entire range of patient care, from outpatients and inpatients to the complementary sector, and thereby have excellent prospects for playing an even more important role in the German health care system. The key success factors are: the consideration of specific regional characteristics, their proximity to the patient, and consistent patient orientation.