[Palliative care in Germany].

The delivery of palliative care in Germany is still characterized by a wide-spread undersupply both for inpatients and outpatients. Nevertheless over the last 15 years progress has also been made in Germany, which is pleasing and which has directed professional and public attention increasingly to the situation of the incurably ill and dying. In the course of this development the first structures for specialized palliative care have been established. In particular the situation for inpatients in hospitals and hospices is pleasing, even if a satisfaction for total coverage is not yet reached. More seriously however is the demand for the outpatients. Financial means, which are steered so far only rudimentarily for palliative care, must be made sufficiently available, in order to be able to meet the demand with the help of appropriate structural offers. It is important to realize the needs of the incurably ill and dying and of their relatives and friends. Our society has to call attention to this subject and it should be placed on the healthpolitical agenda as a topic of the highest priority level. The current developments in the federation and in the federal states are encouraging and allowing hope that the delivery of palliative care for all who need it (and not only the ill) will improve further in the coming years.