Situation report from the Wolfratshauser district clinic: "An extremely lost year"

Created: 07/27/2022, 09:00

By: Veronika Ahn-Tauchnitz

The district hospital and district nursing home recorded a deficit of almost two million euros last year.

© Hermsdorf-Hiss/A

Ingo Kühn, managing director of the Wolfratshauser district clinic, had probably imagined things differently.

After his situation report in the district council, he had to listen to one or two critical remarks.

Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen – Kühn had previously looked back on the pandemic for more than two years.

515 corona cases have been treated in the district clinic since the beginning of 2020 - 136 of them in the intensive care unit.

Ventilation lasted 4.7 days on average.

“My heartfelt thanks go to the staff.

It would not have been possible without these employees.”

The deficit amounts to 1.4 million euros - without the district nursing home

Last year, the clinic's deficit was 1.43 million euros.

If you also take into account the Lenggrieser district nursing home, which is (still) attached to the district clinic, the minus amounts to almost two million euros.

The result of the aging home is deteriorating from year to year.

Since there is now a lack of skilled workers, not all beds can be occupied for a long time.

District nursing home is a problem that could soon be solved

However, this problem will be solved in the medium term.

As reported, the municipality of Lenggries is planning a new building that should go into operation in 2025.

The district decided a long time ago to give up the sponsorship.

The future operator of the nursing home, the Caritas Association Munich, could take over the home as early as January 1, 2023.

"That would bring planning security for the employees and those cared for," said Kühn.

But that's not quite ready to say yet: "We are in negotiations."

The good result of the previous year is also due to high compensation payments

But even without a home, the deficit is around one million euros higher than in the previous year.

Investments, cost increases for medicines and "other effects" led Kühn to the field.

However, the result is significantly better than expected, after all the business plan assumed an annual deficit of around 2.7 million euros, according to Kühn.

However, the better performance was primarily due to the generosity of the federal government, as district controller Hans Gey had already explained to the district committee in April.

During the pandemic, the federal government made extensive compensation payments to the clinics for the fact that they were not allowed to carry out certain operations over long periods of time and thus had a loss of income.

Apparently, the district clinic fared noticeably better with these compensation payments,

Managing director speaks of a "respectable result"

Incidentally, this does not include the district's deficit compensation for obstetrics at this location in the amount of 1.5 million euros.

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Overall, according to Kühn, the district clinic "achieved a respectable result" - also in comparison with the annual results of the surrounding clinics.

"Other hospitals are also in the red."

District Administrator Niedermaier: "There must be no more like this"

The panel was more skeptical here.

The situation for the clinic is not easy, said District Administrator Josef Niedermaier (FW).

In the healthcare sector, “no stone is left unturned”.

The cost and reform pressure in the health sector is enormous.

"You have to adapt to these new ideas - whether you find them good or bad: we have to act accordingly," said the district administrator.

Anyone who has the goal “that everything in the district clinic must remain as it is is the gravedigger of the clinic”.

There should be “no more,” said Niedermaier.

Each euro from the district budget can only be spent once.

Whoever defends an unlimited subsidy for the clinic "is beyond good and evil".

There are no efforts to close the clinic

Nothing has happened since the emotional debate about the future of the district clinic a year ago.

There were certainly work orders from the supervisory board to the managers of the clinic.

"If nothing happens in a company for a year, that's an extremely lost year." You finally have to start the discussion about where the district clinic's place is, which niches it can occupy, which partners make sense.

Niedermaier also asked not to spread rumors again that he or the district council wanted to close the clinic.

"That's just wrong."

District Council misses concepts of how the clinic wants to set up

You can find more current news from the region around Bad Tölz at Merkur.de/Bad Tölz.

Alois Bauer (FW) was even clearer in his criticism: All he ever hears here is that everything is fine.

“But it would be important for the clinic to look for niches and partners.

I miss that.” From his understanding, a company must work economically.

"They are a municipal company, they just need to cover their costs," said Bauer.

At some point you have to recognize the signs of the times.

A concept is needed as to how the clinic wants to position itself for the future.

Kühn's report was only noted.

By the way: Everything from the region is now also available in our regular Bad Tölz newsletter.