HEALTH SYSTEMS ISSUES IN GERMANY RELEVANT TO WELL-BEING AND BURN-OUT
Background: The German ambulatory care sector is mainly sustained by more than 177 000 statutory health insurance physicians and psychotherapists. They provide approximately 650 million high quality treatments per year (versus around 20 million treatments in hospitals) including ambulatory emergency care around the clock. The system is based on self-employment with doctors and psychotherapists running their own practices. They are organized within a system of self-government on a regional and a national level. Satisfaction with working conditions and income is high. Objectives: This article considers the difference between employed and selfemployed doctors as the main key to understanding reasons by which employed doctors are prone to a higher risk of suffering from burn-out than self-employed doctors. It further describes how working conditions are changing and which challenges arise for doctors both in the ambulatory sector and in hospitals. Method: In addressing these objectives, this article considers databases and several surveys performed by the Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung and German health profession organizations. Results and Discussion: Owing to several factors, the number of employed doctors in the ambulatory care sector is rising. As for employed physicians in the hospital sector, the employed doctors in the ambulatory care sector show significantly lower satisfaction rates with their working conditions. This group is at higher risk of experiencing burn-out or at least limited well-being within their professional lives. Conclusion: To prevent doctors in the ambulatory care sector from suffering burn-out it is important to reinforce the principles of self-employment within owner-run practice structures. It is also important to improve the efficiency of doctoral working hours by reducing the currently expanding bureaucracy and by cautiously considering the appointment of non-medical professionals that operate under strict guidance of doctors in addressing aspects of ambulatory care that would be suitable for this task-shifting. It is also essential to improve and implement e-health technologies, and for instance facilitate remote treatment in rural areas.