[Implementing quality management successfully : Experiences from the Bundeswehr Medical Service]

The Bundeswehr's medically and service-oriented rehabilitation for wounded and seriously injured soldiers serves the operational readiness of the armed forces even in peacetime. In addition to the employer's duty of care, it is based on legal requirements, the professional standards of civilian professional societies and cooperation with civilian rehabilitation facilities. In the case of national and collective defence, a QM system geared to military needs is an indispensable basis for sustainable rehabilitation measures under extreme conditions. The experience of a medical facility with a complex rehabilitative mission in the implementation of a QM system, under unfavourable conditions such as staff shortages, training deficits and limited material resources, can be helpful for civilian institutions with regard to public services in crisis and war.