The Disease Management Program Osteoporosis

A central challenge in the health care system is the expansion of care structures for better diagnosis, therapy and prevention of chronic diseases. Due to identified deficits in the care of the chronically ill in Germany, Disease Management Programs (DMPs) were implemented nationwide in 2002 as treatment programs in the outpatient sector. These are structured treatment programs with the aim of improving the course of treatment and the quality of medical care for the chronically ill. Osteoporosis is to be regarded as a widespread chronic disease in Germany, and the challenges in osteoporosis treatment consist on the one hand in the current diagnostic and therapeutic underuse, and on the other hand in a structured treatment approach. With the G-BA decision on a DMP osteoporosis in July 2020, the need for a structured treatment of osteoporosis patients was taken into account. The improved cooperation of the various treating physicians as well as a closer doctor-patient relationship should contribute to closing the gaps in care. Core elements consist of a structuring of the treatment processes and a clear orientation of diagnostics and therapy, based on current evidence-based guidelines. The concrete therapy goals of the DMP Osteoporosis are the avoidance of fractures, pain reduction, fall prophylaxis and an improvement in life expectancy and in the quality of life of the patients. To achieve this, the participating doctors can use the Osteoporosis Guideline of the Dachverband Osteologie e. V. (DVO) as a guideline. This article covers the development of DMPs in Germany and in particular the development of the DMP Osteoporosis step by step.