Innovative treatment network for migraines, headaches, facial pain, cranial neuralgia and neuropathic pain

The Barmer Replacement Fund is one of the two largest health insurance companies in Germany, with around 9.4 million insured people. With effect from January 1, 2018, the Barmer Replacement Fund is a party to the contract for integrated care for migraines, headaches and facial pain, cranial neuralgia and neuropathic pain (IV-K) in accordance with Section 140 a SGB V between the Kiel Pain Clinic and the Techniker Krankenkasse ( TK) joined. This means that those insured by the Barmer Replacement Fund have access to an innovative, nationwide headache treatment network.

In order to overcome the sectoral walls and medical professional boundaries that maintain the diseases, the nationwide headache treatment network was initiated in 2007. It represents a milestone for the care of headache patients. For the first time, it enables nationwide, cross-sector and cross-disciplinary networking of outpatient and inpatient therapy. Care hand in hand, more knowledge, better exchange of information between everyone involved and joint work using clearly defined treatment paths are the basis for contemporary and efficient treatment results.

The supply processes are significantly improved. The patient benefit is the focus of networking:

  • Orientation of the service offering to the needs of the patients
  • optimized treatment based on the latest scientific standards
  • cross-sector, specialized treatment paths
  • immediate implementation of international scientific findings for care
  • organized treatment chain
  • ongoing evaluation
  • Nationwide follow-up care for patients who live away from home through video consultations
  • Exchange of those affected through the digital self-help communities

Patient satisfaction with integrated care in the nationwide headache treatment network is very high. The scientific evaluation shows: Pain is sustainably relieved, quality of life is restored, ability to work is restored and costs are reduced. The network has received several awards, including being recognized as the best implementation of integrated care nationwide.

Care in the nationwide headache network

A nationwide network of outpatient and inpatient pain therapists in practices and clinics work hand in hand to optimally relieve pain across disciplines and sectors using contemporary methods. For illnesses that are refractory to therapy, highly intensive supra-regional and interdisciplinary inpatient treatment can be provided at the Kiel Pain Clinic. For the first time, the concept offers nationwide coordinated treatment without restrictions by professional boundaries and bureaucratic remuneration sectors.

Here's how you can take part: Information about the treatment process can be found here .


New ways in pain therapy

Medical orientation

The treatment network is geared towards the specialized care of severely affected patients with chronic migraine and headache disorders. It includes all serious and complex primary and secondary headache disorders as well as head and facial neuralgia. It focuses on additional serious and complex comorbidities such as: E.g. drug overuse, drug intolerance, psychological and social complications and organ damage.

The supply needs

Migraines and chronic headaches affect around 54 million people in Germany and are the No. 1 widespread disease. According to the WHO, they are the third most severely disabling suffering affecting humanity. According to the EU, they are among the three most expensive neurological diseases. Nationwide, more than three billion individual doses of painkillers are taken every year, 85% of them for headaches.

The treatment of headaches is an example of how the healthcare system, which is fragmented into sectors and based on collective agreements, can lead to illnesses becoming chronic and pain persisting over the long term. Traditional standard care for headache patients takes place in separate sectors of the health system. Many sufferers of chronic headaches self-medicate outside of the professional system due to inefficiency. Find out about the various treatment options for migraines and headaches from friends, the popular press, on the Internet and in the pharmacy. Due to unsatisfactory treatment in the medical field, they often abandon professional therapy and, disappointed, resort to outsider methods. Over months and years, the headache disorder becomes further chronic, serious organ complications and the resulting, often severely disabling, psychological consequences lead the patient back to expensive medical treatment.

This results in very high direct and indirect costs. The individual consequences are serious. High follow-up costs also arise from the treatment of late complications in the form of mental illnesses, kidney failure, liver damage, gastrointestinal ulcers and damage to the cardiovascular system.

The entire knowledge that has been developed nationally and internationally for the care of migraines, headaches and chronic pain is made directly available to patients through integrated care for standard care. The collaboration between innovative health insurance companies and specialists has enabled significant progress in care nationwide beyond standard care. These will be maintained and expanded.

The Kiel Pain Clinic

The Kiel Pain Clinic was founded as a scientific model project in 1997 from the Kiel University Hospital by Prof. Dr. Hartmut Göbel was founded and initially supported contractually by the AOK. After a successful scientific evaluation by the health insurance companies, the concept was adapted for nationwide care by the Techniker Krankenkasse in 2007 and an innovative treatment network with over 450 pain therapists in practice was created nationwide. The approximately 50 member funds of the BKK NORDWEST regional association are also contractual partners. Today, the nationwide center works with coordinated treatment plans and regional pain therapists in practices and clinics as part of multimodal pain therapy.

In order to provide sustainable care for all patients, it was included in the hospital plan of the state of Schleswig-Holstein at the end of 2013. In addition, in accordance with the care contract in accordance with Sections 108 No. 3, 109 SGB V, the center provides acute, fully inpatient treatment (Section 39 Paragraph 1 SGB V) for the following indications for insured persons of all health insurance companies living outside Schleswig-Holstein: chronic pain in diseases of the central, peripheral and autonomic nervous system including the muscles as part of neurobehavioral medical treatment procedures.