Expansion of Health Networks as a Building Block of a Functioning Health Landscape

Abstract

A health network is made up of institutions and organizations, resources, and people whose main purpose is to promote and improve health. The health care system in Germany is self-administering and is managed by multiple institutions and stakeholders which entails different organizations involved in the running of the health care as well as the structure of the health care system. The health care system is composed of three main areas: 1) outpatient care services, 2) inpatient care, 3) rehabilitation institutions. Some of the organizations and institutions that are mandated to run the health system include associations and representatives of different professions and service providers, regulatory bodies, health insurance companies, the Federal Ministry of Health, self-help groups, and patient-centered organizations. The German health care system is made up of four main principles: 1) compulsory insurance, 2) the principle of solidarity, 3) financing through insurance premiums, 4) selfgovernance. The goal of health care networks is to improve the overall performance of the health care systems concerning: 1) economic efficiency, 2) quality of health care services, 3) medical innovation, 4) as well as patient satisfaction.