The aim of this report is to provide the reader an overview of the complex therapy currently used within the German health system. Complex therapies in inpatient care in Germany establish the basis for an integrative and interdisciplinary provision of services. They define minimal criteria for the organization of a hospital, enable the integration of different therapeutic approaches, and therefore, lead to an intensive and holistic treatment by a specially trained team. The German model can be viewed as a pilot program for the introduction of integrative patient-centered care in other hospitals around the world.

Introduction:The distinctive characteristics of the German health system are medical progress and financial pressure—and this is especially true of the hospitals. These challenges must be met by strategic management instruments for quality assurance, and by reducing costs.Purpose:This article presents the instrument “clinical pathway” (also known as “clinical treatment pathway”) and describes the possibilities it offers, both for quality assurance and risk management, and for cost reduction. The clinical pathway presented here will be that for “multimodal pain therapy”, as used in the context of acute inpatient care in Germany.Methods:A general presentation of the risks in hospital is followed by consideration of the risks associated with core processes. A comprehensive total cost analysis is performed for those patients who meet the pathway entry criteria and who fulfil the requirements for the structure of care provided within multimodal pain therapy.Discussion and Conclusion:Multimodal pain therapy places high demands on the structural, procedural and outcome quality of the medical, nursing and therapeutic services provided, and these demands are reflected in high costs for the provision of this care. The treatment process involves many different professional groups. These complex interfaces can potentially generate risks, which can lead to the possibility of legal liability. A clinical pathway must structure the core process and then combine elements of quality assurance in order to optimise patient care and minimise risk. The examination of costs reveals significant potential savings (patients with clinical pathway: EUR 3086±212; patients without clinical pathway: EUR 3774±460; Mann-Whitney U test; p<0.001). For the managers of a hospital, the clinical pathway represents a strategic management instrument that can serve for continual cost control and cost reduction, and can contribute in the form of quality assurance towards a transparent provision of services.

Objectives: This controlled study evaluates a multi-modal pain therapy for treating severe progressions of fibromyalgia [FMS] syndrome. The aim is to establish whether the use of multi-modal therapy with inclusion of whole-body hyperthermia represents a useful therapeutic addition to inpatient therapy of FMS syndrome at a high level of chronification. Methods: The study involved 130 patients who fulfilled the criteria of the American College of Rheumatology [ACR] for FMS and whose disease showed severe progression. One group of patients [HTG] received whole-body hyperthermia, while the control group [CG] did not. The main parameters of the study were pain intensity and the mental state of the patients. Further study parameters were the diagnoses additional to FMS syndrome and the therapy density of the treatment provided in the two groups. Results: The integration of whole-body hyperthermia into the multi-modal pain therapy showed superior pain reduction [p ¼ 0.023] and an improvement in the mental state of the patients [p ¼ 0.055]. In addition to the primary disease, the patients presented with an average of 6.7 accompanying diseases, primarily from major diagnostic categories 8 [diseases and disturbances of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissues], 19 [mental diseases and disturbances] and 10 [endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases]. Analysis of the therapy density of the inpatient multi-modal pain therapy revealed a close-meshed and high-frequency therapy. Conclusions: Multi-modal pain therapy was also found to be a highly effective therapy option in the case of severely progressive FMS syndrome. Extension of the multi-modal therapy setting to include whole-body hyperthermia can be considered as a useful and effective complement for pain relief and stabilisation of the mental state.

IntroductionFibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a multi-factorial disease involving physiological as well as psychological factors. The aim of the study was to investigate a multidisciplinary inpatient treatment with emphasis on hyperthermia therapy by patients with widespread pain.Materials and methodsThe study involved 104 patients suffering from severely progressive FMS. A convenience sample and a prospective cohort design were used. The patients were treated in an acute hospital focusing on rheumatologic pain therapy and multidisciplinary complementary medicine. One patient group was treated with inclusion of hyperthermia therapy and the other group without. The therapy density (number of performed therapies per patient) was determined for every patient. Functional capacity measured by the Hannover functional status questionnaire (Funktionsfragebogen Hannover) and symptoms (von Zerssen complaint list) were analyzed for both groups on admission and on discharge.ResultsOn admission, no significant difference could be established between control group (CG; multimodal without hyperthermia) and hyperthermia group (HG; multimodal with hyperthermia) (functional capacity, P=0.936). Functional capacity improved for the CG and the HG. On discharge, there was a significant difference between the two groups (functional capacity, P=0.039). There were no significant differences in fibromyalgia symptoms between CG (mean 41.8) and HG (mean 41.8) on their admission to hospital (P=0.988). On discharge, there was a significant difference (P=0.024) between the two groups (HG, mean 30.6; CG, mean 36.6). The inpatient therapy of patients with severely progressive fibromyalgia is characterized by a high frequency of therapy input.ConclusionFMS, especially with severe progression and a high degree of chronification, demands a multidisciplinary approach. In addition to the use of complementary medical procedures, integration of hyperthermia in the treatment process is a useful option.

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Pay for Quality (P4Q) concepts are discussed as solution for ensuring quality in health care in the context of budgetary concerns. However, little is known regarding the application to and effectiveness for complex chronic treatments. This article describes the incentivization approach taken in Germany, where complex codes requiring specific quality criteria were implemented into the Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs) system. Using two examples (early complex geriatric rehabilitation, multimodal rheumatological complex treatment), we analyze the quality indicators according to the Donabedian Model and contrast the effects regarding compensation to traditional treatments. In total, the approach allows taking into account treatment and financial requirements.

Background and purposeAs a disease of the musculoskeletal system, fibromyalgia is becoming increasingly important, because of the direct and indirect costs to health systems. The purpose of this study of health economics was to obtain information about staff costs differentiated by service provider, and staff and material costs of the nonmedical infrastructure in inpatient care.Patients and methodsThis study looked at 263 patients who received interdisciplinary inpatient treatment for severe forms of fibromyalgia with acute exacerbation of pain between 2011 and 2014. Standardized cost accounting and an analysis of additional diagnoses were performed.ResultsThe average cost per patient was €3,725.84, with staff and material costs of the nonmedical infrastructure and staff costs of doctors and nurses accounting for the highest proportions of the costs. Each fibromyalgia patient had an average of 6.1 additional diagnoses.ConclusionSevere forms of fibromyalgia are accompanied by many concomitant diseases and associated with both high clinical staff costs and high medical and nonmedical infrastructure costs. Indication-based cost calculations provide important information for health policy and hospital managers if they include all elements that incur costs in both a differentiated and standardized way.