Shortage of dermatologists in Saxony worsens significantly

The shortage of dermatologists in private practice continues to worsen in Saxony. As the latest figures from medical demand planning show, there are significantly fewer dermatologists to care for the population in many regions of the Free State today than there were ten years ago.

The so-called dermatological care level is calculated. It indicates how many dermatologists there are in a region in relation to the calculated "required" target. This is based on the medical requirements planning of the Associations of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians. A supply level of 100 percent means that there are exactly as many dermatologists as are planned for the population.

From oversupply to undersupply

Measured against this figure, the development is particularly dramatic in the Löbau-Zittau district region (Görlitz district): the dermatology supply level there is currently only 15 percent, compared to 122 percent in 2016. In the district region of Annaberg (Erzgebirgskreis), the level of care fell from 161 to 60 percent in the same period, and in Bautzen from 142 to 78 percent.

According to the data, Saxony is not alone in this development. Rural regions in other eastern German states are also increasingly affected by a very low level of dermatology care.

Old age, emigration and a lack of prospects

"The data shows that parts of eastern Germany are approaching a structural undersupply in outpatient dermatology," said the President of the Professional Association of German Dermatologists (BVDD), Ralph von Kiedrowski. If planning areas have care levels in the lower double-digit range, this is not just a statistical finding - it means long distances, long waiting times, delayed diagnosis and avoidable disease progression for patients.

The BVDD cites age-related practice closures, a lack of successors and the reduced attractiveness of rural regions as the causes. Experts from the BVDD and the German Dermatological Society (DDG) will discuss the situation and possible solutions at a joint virtual press conference on February 24.