[Staffing level: Survey among psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic institutions in Germany]
Hans-Christoph Friederich1, Gereon Heuft2, Ulrich Cuntz3
1Klinisches Institut für Psychosomatische Medizin und Psychotherapie Medizinische Fakultät Universitätsklinikum Düsseldorf Moorenstraße 5 40225 Düsseldorf UKD - Universitätsklinikum Düsseldorf - Klinisches Institut für Psychosomatische Medizin und Psychotherapie.
Abstract:
Staffing level: Survey among psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic institutions in Germany Objectives: To establish the first nationwide hospital survey to assess the level of staffing for inpatient and daycare treatment in psychosomatic hospitals and specialist departments in Germany.
Methods:
Using a standardized written hospital survey from the Deutsches Krankenhausinstitut (DKI), we invited a total of 218 psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic hospitals and specialist departments to participate. The participation rate of the institutions was 35%.
Results:
In the overall sample, one psychotherapist (physician/clinical psychologist) was responsible for treating a median of 3.9 beds/patients (interquartile range 3.1-5.1) and one nurse a median of 2.9 beds/patients (interquartile range 2.3-3.9). There were significant differences for the nurse-patient ratio depending on the organizational size of the institution. To ensure quality treatment, professional experts saw increased staffing needs of about 12-17% across both professions. For the professional groups of specialist therapists and social workers, broad variances were observed for the therapist-patient ratio in the overall sample.
Conclusions:
The study provides an important and relevant data basis for the further discussion to determine mandatory minimal staffing levels in German psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic institutions.
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