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Four ways digitalization is changing Germany

Germany is a world leader in technology but it still has some way to go on the journey towards digitalization. It can be an adjustment for expats relocating from more digitally-advanced countries.

Published: 2 September 2019 09:20 CEST
Four ways digitalization is changing Germany
Photo: Unsplash and Pexels

However, the future’s bright and big plans are underway to bring Germany squarely into the digital age. The Local has partnered with ottonova, a private health insurer offering both digital and conventional healthcare services, to present four areas where digitalization has been slow and give you an idea of when it will catch up.

Registration 

The first thing to contend with when moving to Germany is the country’s notorious registration process. Everyone living in Germany is required to register a new address within 14 days of moving, a bureaucratic delight known as the Anmeldung.

Now for the fun part: the Anmeldung is done in person at the Bürgeramt (citizens office). You’ll need to book an appointment – which is done online or by calling up – and you’ll need to book it in advance as spots can fill up weeks beforehand. If you’re not able to get an appointment on time, you’ll have to visit the Bürgeramt in person, pick up a number and wait. And then probably wait some more. 

Earning over €60,750 in Germany? Get private health insurance from ottonova

The good news is that in 2017 the chief of staff at the German chancellery set a goal of making the country’s 500 administrative services digital. It’s part of the government’s wider digital strategy that aims to improve the quality of life for everyone living in Germany and means that by the end of 2022, all of the services offered by authorities – including the Anmeldung – will be available online.

Healthcare 

Figuring out an unfamiliar healthcare system is a struggle for expats all over the world, but it’s a struggle that can be lessened by digital healthcare. 

Digitalization has been slowly and steadily taking place in Germany and more healthcare apps are becoming available. Private health insurance provider ottonova has been a trailblazer in this department, offering digital solutions to make life easier for expats in Germany. 

For example, there are over 392,000 doctors working in Germany but only 55,000 who hail from international backgrounds. Unsurprisingly, this can make it trickier to find an English-speaking doctor. Once you have, you could be in for a long wait until your appointment – in some cases, this can take weeks. With ottonova, an English-speaking doctor is always just a couple of clicks away – using the app you can request a doctor’s appointment in person or via video call as well as around-the-clock advice from ottonova’s ‘concierge’ team, documents delivered through the app and reimbursement of your bills within hours. 

READ ALSO: Seven of the biggest healthcare culture shocks in Germany

It also makes it much simpler to see a specialist. In most cases, you need to see a general practitioner to get a referral to a doctor who’s more specialised, a process that can feel frustratingly long. When you have private health insurance with ottonova, you just need to let the concierge team know the issue you are experiencing and they will book you an appointment with a nearby specialist.

Public transportation

Photo: Mathes/Depositphotos

If you’ve ever tried to get from A to B in Germany on public transport, you’ll know it can feel like you need a PhD just to understand which ticket to buy.

Germany’s national railway, the Deutsche Bahn, operates throughout the country but there are also many regional operators. For example, Berlin’s S-Bahn (the city rapid railway), is a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn and part of the Transport Association Berlin-Brandenburg (VBB). Each city has its own system as well as individual rules when it comes to ticket validity and often these aren’t clearly communicated. For example, Deutsche Bahn can offer special deals – but they are only valid with a printed ticket. So it’s no surprise that many people get caught out and lumbered with a hefty fine. 

Find out more about ottonova’s private health insurance packages

The public transport system might be complicated but most transport organisations do offer apps. If you know which one to use and when, purchasing tickets and travelling in Germany can be a breeze. If you don’t, not so much. Could Germany follow the lead of nearby Sweden, which is thinking of introducing a single ticketing app? There are no plans yet but with the rate Germany is digitalizing, you’d do well to watch this space…

Mobile infrastructure

When you’re living and working abroad, communication is a priority. Whether it’s sending emails to colleagues, using Google Translate, or ringing family back home, your handy (mobile phone) becomes absolutely essential.

With that in mind, it’s not ideal that Germany’s mobile phone network coverage is officially one of the worst in Europe. Despite its reputation for efficiency and innovation, other EU countries often offer better overall mobile services. While in nearby Sweden travellers on the metro can text and surf as normal, in Germany you’ll be faced with many ‘dead spots’, i.e. areas where you get little to no reception at all. 

Public WiFi also isn’t as widespread as it is in other counties. Germans are still quite privacy sensitive and the cafes and public spaces that do have WiFi will ask you to register your details first. When you do finally find some WiFi, you may also often find that it doesn’t actually work.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel though. The government plans that by 2025 all of Germany will be served by 5G, the latest high-speed generation of cellular network technology. It has established mobile infrastructure as a priority and aims to become the leading market for 5G applications.

So hold on tight. Germany may be trailing ever so slightly behind in the digitalization race but it’s making serious efforts to move into first place. And when it comes to ottonova’s digital healthcare services, in many ways it already is.

This article was produced by The Local Creative Studio and sponsored by ottonova.

 
For members

HEALTH

How to find available therapists in Germany

It’s no secret that mental health care can be particularly tricky to access in Germany. Here are some helpful tips for anyone who is struggling to book an appointment for therapy.

Published: 23 April 2024 12:55 CEST
How to find available therapists in Germany

The process to find psychotherapy in Germany’s urban centres is arduous – licensed therapists often have impossibly long wait times, and private practices don’t accept public health insurance.

A major reason that public insurance funded mental health care is hard to find in Germany comes down to regulations. Specifically the ‘coverage plan’ (Bedarfsplanung) that basically limits the number of licences available for publicly insured therapists in a region.

Germany’s maddening bureaucracy probably won’t be fixed any time soon. So residents in need of therapy will need to find a way through the system as it is.

So here are a few helpful tips for finding therapists, as well as how publicly insured patients can have private practice therapy costs reimbursed.

Look for therapists enrolled at academies

You’ll probably have a better chance getting an appointment with therapists who are currently in training, because not everyone knows that this option exists.

You can search for “Akademie für Psychotherapie”, to find one in your location. The Berliner Akademie für Psychotherapie, is one in the capital city, for example.

If you arrange an appointment this way, you can expect to be connected with a grad student therapist in training who needs to complete their supervised practice hours. In this case, you would see your therapist as usual, and they will be going through your session with an experienced therapist afterward.

The main advantages to seeking a therapist in training is that it may be cheaper and you can probably more readily find an appointment. A potential disadvantage is that the therapist you’ll be seeing is less experienced. 

But according to a Stockholm University study, student therapists who receive regular feedback from supervisors may be just as effective as licensed therapists at treating patients.

How to get reimbursed for going to a private practice

As mentioned above, therapists covered by public health insurance are few and far between, especially in many urban centres, and therefore regularly come with long wait times. But for those willing to do battle with the bureaucracy, there is an option to have your costs reimbursed for seeing a private practice therapist.

Specifically, public insurance providers are obligated to provide full reimbursement of costs in the event of a “supply emergency”. 

Waiting times of more than three months are considered unreasonable. So generally, patients can claim a supply emergency if they have contacted several therapists, and none of them offered available appointments within that time frame.

But you’ll want to make sure that your process is properly documented so that you won’t be stuck with the out-of-pocket costs.

First, you’ll need to document your need for psychotherapy. To get this, make an appointment for a psychotherapeutic consultation with a practice in your area, and be sure to collect a written recommendation for treatment (a PTV 11 form). 

If you don’t know where to start with this, look to the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (Kassenärztliche Vereinigung) for a database of therapists. You can also call 116 117 or use the 116 117 App.

After you’ve got your PTV 11 certificate, you’ll need to document your futile search for a licensed therapist. To do this, contact at least three to five therapists that have public health insurance approval. Keep a list of the names of therapists you contacted, as well as dates and times of contact and how long the waiting list for treatment is. 

Additionally, you should try to arrange treatment through the aforementioned Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, and receive confirmation if it’s not possible. So you’ll need to call 116 117, or use the 116 117 App again. But this time go through the process to have them try to find you placement with a therapist. This should take a maximum of four weeks, but rarely happens.

Finally, if you have documented all of the above and have still not found a readily available therapist, then you can seek out a private practice. You’ll need to enroll as a self-paying patient initially, but then you can submit an application for an outpatient reimbursement (Kostenerstattungsverfahren) along with the previously collected certificates and proof of your search. Private practice therapists are usually familiar with this process, and may be able to help you with the application as well.

READ ALSO: What are the main reasons internationals in Germany turn to therapy?

Free phone consultations for students

Students in Berlin can also take advantage of a free 50-minute conversation with a therapist through StudierendenWERK.

For students elsewhere, it’s worth checking what kind of mental health support services your school offers. Many German universities offer mental health support to some extent, and if school counsellors can’t provide the care that you need, they may be able to offer helpful information about where such services are available in your area.

READ ALSO: Here’s how you can get mental health help in English in Germany

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