ME/CFS Skeptic
Senior Member (Voting Rights)
There have been quite a lot of improvements in the ME/CFS situation in Germany. There are now investment in research, the IQWiG report, political discussions on ME/CFS etc. I realise these are all still inadequate and that the situation for ME/CFS patients in Germany remains dire.
But the pace of change in Germany is quite remarkable. When I joined this forum around 5 years ago, it felt like a wasteland where ME/CFS was not recognized at all and psychosomatics ruled. I was even surprised to find quite a few forum members on S4ME were from Germany because I had not seen any German ME/CFS news or advocacy online.
So my question is what explains the improvement in Germany compared to other countries (i.e. France, Italy, Spain)? Perhaps there are things we can learn from it to make our advocacy more successful.
I personally suspect that the role of Carmen Scheibenbogen cannot be underestimated. Other countries often lack a respected physician/researcher who diagnoses patients and helps to raise awareness of the illness.
I am far from knowledgable on everything what has been done in Germany so would be interested in hearing other views and perspectives on this.
But the pace of change in Germany is quite remarkable. When I joined this forum around 5 years ago, it felt like a wasteland where ME/CFS was not recognized at all and psychosomatics ruled. I was even surprised to find quite a few forum members on S4ME were from Germany because I had not seen any German ME/CFS news or advocacy online.
So my question is what explains the improvement in Germany compared to other countries (i.e. France, Italy, Spain)? Perhaps there are things we can learn from it to make our advocacy more successful.
I personally suspect that the role of Carmen Scheibenbogen cannot be underestimated. Other countries often lack a respected physician/researcher who diagnoses patients and helps to raise awareness of the illness.
I am far from knowledgable on everything what has been done in Germany so would be interested in hearing other views and perspectives on this.