Urgent need for specialists in rheumatology care
Expected shortage of rheumatology care in the coming years
Retirement is approaching – of the 1,161 rheumatologists currently in practice, 386 are aged 60 or older – creating a real threat of a shortage in rheumatological care in the coming years. This is the conclusion of a recent study by Dr. Katinka Albrecht and Dr. Johanna Callhoff from the Health Services Research Group at the German Rheumatology Research Center (DRFZ), a Leibniz Institute.
The epidemiologists evaluated medical statistics data from the German Medical Association, the Federal Medical Register of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, and basic data from hospitals: “About one-third of rheumatologists are due to retire within the next two to six years,” explains Albrecht. However, many older clinicians are continuing to work beyond the regular retirement age in order to ensure care can continue to be provided.
Together with my wife, we still treat about 1,000 patients in our rheumatology practice, and we are unable to refer them to other practices; they are simply not accepted
…says 77-year-old rheumatologist Prof. Dr. Klaus Krüger from Munich, who has been actively involved in scientific work alongside his clinical activities for many years and supports the research activities of the Epidemiology programme area at the DRFZ.
At the same time, there are too few training positions to educate enough rheumatology specialists. “Only about 60 physicians receive specialist certification in rheumatology each year, which is not enough to compensate for age-related retirements,” Callhoff confirms, “and we are far from the urgently needed growth in rheumatology.” Currently, there is only one rheumatologist per 100,000 adult residents in the statutory health insurance outpatient care system – at least two would be required for basic care. As a result, patients wait too long for an appointment. For newly diagnosed patients, this can lead to irreversible health issues that could have been avoided with early treatment. The shortage is further exacerbated by changes in employment patterns, with a growing proportion of part-time positions. At the end of 2024, 42% of specialists in contract-based medical care were employed on a salaried basis, rather than working in their own practices.
With the help of the latest statistics from the DRFZ, the German Society for Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology (DGRh) is reinforcing its call on politicians to provide more training positions in rheumatology in order to ensure patient care.
