The German Society for Palliative Medicine (DGP) is a scientific professional society with more than 5,300 members. In the spirit of palliative care, it brings together all professional groups involved in palliative and hospice care, including physicians, nurses, psychologists, chaplains, physiotherapists, pharmacists and social professionals.
They all work together in the DGP at eye level. The office in Berlin coordinates the activities of the society and its members. Members from different professions meet in multiprofessional working groups to address substantive topics. For example, the education working group has developed curricula for various professional groups, while the inpatient care group has made proposals for improving the case-based reimbursement system with palliative-specific procedure codes.
The DGP regularly publishes statements on political and health-policy topics, such as end-of-life accompaniment and financing of palliative care. Through the National Hospice and Palliative Register, it collects data on hospice and palliative care in Germany. In the future, comparable data can be made available for discussions with policymakers and payers.
The DGP also provides the platform "Wegweiser Hospizund Palliativversorgung Deutschland", an overview of services and institutions. It is based on hospice and palliative care institutions that register and enter contact details and further information.
The DGP co-initiated and co-sponsors the Charter for the Care of Seriously Ill and Dying People in Germany and the subsequent national strategy for palliative care. The development of the S3 guideline on palliative medicine for patients with incurable cancer is another major project of recent years. Every two years the DGP holds a congress, alternating with a members' day.
Creating knowledge in a field so strongly shaped by attitude, empathy and care means defining criteria for good palliative medicine, researching the effects of treatment, care and accompaniment, developing quality criteria for care and education, and understanding the necessary framework conditions.
The Bavarian state representation of the DGP
To act at state level and address regional particularities, state representations have been founded in several federal states. The Bavarian representation was founded in 2006 and now has around 820 members. It is represented by two speakers and two deputy speakers and supported by specialist departments.
These departments include inpatient palliative care, palliative medical services, inpatient hospices, care for older people and people with disabilities, specialized outpatient palliative care, general outpatient palliative care, pediatrics, geriatrics, research and teaching, continuing education and public relations.
Every DGP member in Bavaria can actively participate in work-field-related groups. Current topics include general palliative care by family doctors and the establishment and further development of palliative services. The office and speakers of the Bavarian DGP representation maintain close contact with politics, the ministry and other organizations in the hospice and palliative sector.
