2.1 Planning the treatment programme

The management should plan the range of services offered by the hospital with regard to therapeutic, diagnostic and nursing treatments. The scope of the services offered, the usual procedure and how services are initiated and terminated should be set out. It must always be ensured that all necessary resources, facilities, technical and personnel support are available at the time the treatment is offered. The treatment programme should be structured in a patient-oriented manner. Co-operation with referring physicians and follow-up care facilities should be sought. The hospital should clarify for all departments whether there is a demand for their services. This corresponds to a market analysis. Epidemiological methods are well suited to collecting meaningful data on the general care structure and epidemiology in the hospital's own care area, including age structure, gender distribution and morbidity spectrum. Demographic, socio-economic data and data sources on the health status of the population should support planning. The findings will be used to adapt the organisation's own healthcare services to actual needs, to identify healthcare trends in good time and to coordinate with other healthcare providers. When planning the range of services, the expectations (expressed, implied, conscious or unconscious) of patients, payers and society with regard to the service and its provision should be taken into account in terms of entitlement class, preferences, supplementary services and legal requirements. The range of services should be made known and understood in an appropriate manner by the beneficiaries, referring physicians and payers.