Medicine Increasing shortages of doctors in the canton of Berne
Anyone who needs a doctor's appointment in the canton of Bern is finding it increasingly difficult. There is an undersupply in the areas of psychiatry, family medicine, paediatrics and dermatology in particular, the Medical Association of the Canton of Bern announced on Tuesday.
25.06.2024, 11:03
SDA
In a survey, more than two thirds of the doctors questioned described the supply situation in five specialist areas as critical or undersupplied. According to the survey, the situation is most difficult in child and adolescent psychiatry, where 86 percent of those surveyed felt there was an undersupply.
This is followed by psychiatry / psychotherapy with 82%, family medicine with 75%, pediatrics and adolescent medicine with 74% and dermatology with 69%.
"The most affected specialties have been showing a negative trend for ten years," said Sven Streit, co-head of the survey analysis, according to the press release. It therefore comes as no surprise that the situation is now worsening.
According to the medical association, there have recently been increasing bottlenecks in dermatology. On the other side of the scale are specialist areas that have been sufficiently well supplied for years. These include orthopaedic surgery, cardiology, radiology, angiology (vascular diseases) and general surgery.
Early warning system
The Medical Association has been conducting the care survey every two years since 2013. It is intended to serve as an early warning system, according to the press release. The shortage of specialists must be countered.
Important measures to promote training and further education have already been initiated. These include increasing the number of study places in human medicine and the practice assistant program. However, efforts need to be significantly intensified and extended to other specialist disciplines outside of primary care.
