APST supports patients in Berlin and Brandenburg who want to find the right physiotherapist, occupational therapist or speech therapist. APST coordinates a network of therapy practices in the Berlin area.
A doctor sees the need for a remedy, such as physiotherapy, and issues a medical prescription. In the next step, the patient instructs an APST coordinator to identify a specialised therapeutic practice. Three criteria play a role: the professional suitability of the practice, the proximity to the patient's home or (if necessary) the possibility of a home visit, and the available capacity to care for the patient. The coordinator forwards the request for care and the doctor's prescription to the therapy practice, which contacts the patient directly to arrange an appointment.
Three areas can be distinguished in which the coordination of physiotherapy or occupational therapy as well as speech therapy through APST is beneficial for patients:
Qualification
The providers in the therapist network have a specialisation for the treatment of neurological diseases. In principle, after completing training, every therapist is qualified to treat neuromuscular diseases. However, in addition to formal training, daily experience is crucial for the quality of treatment. By specialising in neurological and neuromuscular diseases, additional expertise can be acquired. Further qualification characteristics can be achieved through training and job shadowing with neurologists and other specialists.
Prescription management
Ambulanzpartner coordinates the prescription processes between doctor, patient and care partners. The standardisation of the initial and repeat issuing of prescriptions as well as the electronic documentation on the APST portal reduces organisational expenses for the patient, doctor and therapist. The predominantly electronic processing of prescription procedures reduces the number of necessary telephone calls and the associated interruptions in outpatient clinic and practice operations.
Feedback on the treatment success
An innovative instrument for quality improvement is the feedback tool within the APST internet portal. With the evaluation of physiotherapy, logotherapy and occupational therapy by the patients themselves, the therapists receive an evaluation of the subjective benefits and possible burdens of their treatment for the patient. Via a personal password, the patient receives access to his or her individual electronic account, in which the ongoing therapies are recorded and the patient has the possibility of an evaluation of the therapy effect. This feedback is confidential and thus differs in principle from public doctor and therapist evaluation portals.
