Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 19, 2025
Halogenated Agent Delivery in Porcine Model of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome via an Intensive Care Unit Type Device
Published on: September 24, 2020
[Structure of hospital care for COVID-19 patients up to July 2020 in Germany]
C Hentschker1, C Mostert1, J Klauber1
1Wissenschaftliches Institut der AOK (WIdO), Berlin, Deutschland.
Insights
German hospitals saw a centralization of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, but many hospitals lacked adequate ventilation experience. A pyramid-based care system could improve COVID-19 patient allocation and outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Health Services Research
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology
- Critical Care Medicine
Background:
- Hospitalized coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients exhibit high morbidity and mortality, often requiring intensive care and mechanical ventilation.
- Understanding the allocation structures for COVID-19 patients in hospitals is crucial for optimizing care delivery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the German hospital care structures for COVID-19 patients up to July 2020.
- To evaluate bed allocation and prior ventilation experience in hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of completed COVID-19 cases confirmed by PCR testing.
- Utilized claims data from German Local Health Care Funds (AOK).
- Included 17,094 COVID-19 cases from 1082 hospitals.
Main Results:
- 77% of hospitals treated COVID-19 patients; 48% provided intensive care.
- Half of the hospitals handled 88% of COVID-19 cases, indicating centralization.
- 12% of cases were dispersed among numerous hospitals, and 23% of ventilated cases were in hospitals with below-average experience.
Conclusions:
- Improving COVID-19 patient allocation through centrally controlled, pyramid-type concepts is necessary.
- A greater concentration of complex COVID-19 cases in highly qualified hospitals appears reasonable for Germany.
- Continued care for non-COVID-19 patients must be maintained alongside optimized COVID-19 care strategies.
Background:
Hospitalized coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients have a high morbidity and mortality and are often dependent on intensive care, especially mechanical ventilation. Little is as yet known about COVID-19 patient allocation.
Objectives:
Analysis of the structures of German hospital care for COVID-19 patients up to July 2020 in terms of number of beds and previous ventilation experience.
Data And Methods:
For the analysis of the care structures, only completed COVID-19 cases in which the virus was detected by a PCR test were evaluated. Claims data from the German Local Health Care Funds (Allgemeine Ortskrankenkassen, AOK) were analysed. The sample includes 17,094 COVID-19 cases that were treated in 1082 hospitals.
Results:
A total of 77% of all hospitals participated in the treatment COVID-19 patients and 48% of all hospitals provided intensive care for these patients. One half of the hospitals that treated COVID-19 cases cared for 88% of all cases. Although this suggests a centralization effect of COVID-19 cases in specific hospitals, the remaining 12% of the cases were distributed among many hospitals with often very small numbers of cases. Furthermore, 23% of the ventilated COVID-19 cases were treated in hospitals with below-average ventilation experience.
Conclusions:
In the context of increasing numbers of infections, it is both necessary to improve the allocation of hospitalized, and therefore potentially ventilated, COVID-19 cases by means of clearly defined and centrally controlled pyramid-type concepts and to continue to care for patients without COVID-19. For Germany, a comprehensive pyramid-type concept with a greater concentration in the best-qualified hospitals seems reasonable for the care of these patients with complex diseases.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:28Hospitals-I
00:59Hospitals-II
Nurses that work in...
01:21Tertiary Healthcare System
01:11Secondary Healthcare System
01:28Pneumonia IV: Management
Bacterial Pneumonia Treatment
For bacterial pneumonia, antibiotics serve as the cornerstone of therapy. Initial treatment often begins with empirical antibiotics, tailored to the anticipated causative organism and adjusted based on culture results. Key antibiotic choices include:
01:29Issues And Trends In Healthcare Delivery System
Cost Containment
Payment for healthcare services has historically promoted adoption of costly and often unnecessary or inefficient...