Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained – Is The Innovation Fund The Catapult to A New Generation of Care Concepts and A Competitive Market in Health Care in Germany?

Abstract

Objectives: In 2004 the German health legislation invented a couple of new and innovative care models in order to increase a more competitive care market and to improve the quality and efficiency of care provisions. More than ten years after invention the market share of this new models still only are about 1% of the total health care marked volume. To put the stalled project back on track last year's legislation abolished major bureaucratic hurdles, improved contracting conditions and invented a funding for innovative care concepts and care research on existing care models -the Innovations fund at G-BA. MethOds: Analysis of the first three waves of applications to the Innovation fund regarding timing, process, quantity and quality of applications, funding volume and period. Results: Germany's Joint Federal Committee (G-BA) grants 300 Million Euro per year for innovative care concepts (225 Million Euro) and care research (75 Million Euro). In a first round of applications for care research funding, 296 concepts for research projects, aiming the knowledge production on the advancement of care provisions have been submitted. One third (93) has been open-topic and two third (203) topic-specific proposals. The majority of the topic-specific proposals targeting the topic of "quality assurance and patient safety in health care" followed by the topic on "Application of routine data for the improvement of care provisions". The exceedingly fewest proposals focused on the topics "Innovative concepts of patient oriented nursing" and "administrative and bureaucratic requirements in healthcare". Other topic-specific themes addressed have been -"Needs-based justice and/or efficiency of care in social health insurance funding" and "Tools for measuring Quality of life". cOnclusiOns: Currently two further waves on innovative care concepts are ongoing (due July5th and 19th) that will reveal further knowledge on the new topics funded by Innovation fund and will be presented in the final poster.

Capturing what and why in healthcare innovation

“…… new and innovative care models in order to increase a more competitive care market and to improve the quality and efficiency of care provisions. (Droeschel et al , pA635)49…”

“…Such innovation is heterogeneous—split by product (goods and services that can generate new revenue) and process (techniques that improve internal capabilities to drive efficiencies). (Droeschel et al , p106)49…”