[Legal aspects of "patient orientation" in rehabilitation]

Social Security Law und especially Book Nine of the Social Security Code, SGB 9 follow the guideline of self-determination and equal participation of disabled people. With this background it has to be criticized to regard disabled people as patients. Rehabilitation Administration has to be oriented on individual needs. The right to individual wishes and choice of assessment, services and institutions and of the benefits has to be respected. Also the services and institutions have to respect self-determination and to enable to exercise it. On an institutional level the organisations of disabled people have to participate in designing the benefits, the planning of the infrastructure and the counselling of people with disabilities. In practice, the SGB 9 still has to be implemented consequently.