News from Germany

[rvallee]

Christian Zacharias, a German pwME, has published a book titled "Everything is psychosomatic".

Christian has severely deteriorated.

ME/CFS in Hamburg: 82-Jährige verzweifelt an Pflege ihres Sohnes – niemand kann ihn aufnehmen

Seniorin musste Pflege des immer schwerer am Chronischen Fatigue-Syndrom Erkrankten übernehmen. Bis sie selbst nicht mehr konnte.

www.abendblatt.de

https://archive.ph/5S6wz

It is Friday, February 20th, which marks the end of an unimaginable ordeal. On this day, six men carry Krista Zacharias's son Christian in a kind of carrier down the narrow spiral staircase of her apartment. At the bottom, the ambulance is waiting to him to the palliative care unit of the Asklepios Clinic in Altona take . Christian Zacharias suffers from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome , or ME/CFS for short , a severe chronic multisystem illness for which there is currently no cure.

 

[Chandelier]

Menschlichkeit im Gesundheitssystem: "Sie müssen abnehmen", sagte der Chefarzt vor versammelter Mannschaft

Beleidigt, belächelt, ignoriert: Nikola Biller-Andorno wertet aus, was Menschen als Patienten erleben. Die Ethikerin sagt: Medizin muss unbedingt menschlicher werden.

www.zeit.de

Insulted, ridiculed, ignored: Nikola Biller-Andorno analyzes what people experience as patients. The ethicist argues that medicine urgently needs to become more humane.​

Die Zeit published an 1600-word interview with

Nikola Biller-Andorno​

The physician and philosopher heads the Institute of Biomedical Ethics and History of Medicine at the University of Zurich. In Switzerland, she has built a database of patient narratives. On a new platform—No Longer Patient—she now aims to promote exchange between patients, relatives, and professionals in order to improve care in the healthcare system.​

Spoiler: AI Summary of the interview

Medical ethicist Nikola Biller-Andorno has spent a decade collecting patients’ stories and finds that many feel ignored, humiliated, or not taken seriously in everyday medical care. While serious medical errors occur, patients often recall “small” experiences—poor communication, lack of empathy, or chaotic coordination—that undermine trust. She argues that healthcare focuses heavily on technology and efficiency but neglects human interaction. Biller-Andorno calls for stronger patient voices and more democratic participation in healthcare, including platforms where patients, relatives, and professionals can share experiences to identify systemic problems and improve care.

 

[rvallee]

ME/CFS: Welcome to the worst-case scenario

ME/CFS nach Corona war ein Worst Case mit Ansage - Wissens-Kolumne von NANO und Terra X

Hunderttausende leiden nach einer Corona-Infektion an Langzeitfolgen. Die Patienten und ihre Beschwerden werden jedoch weitgehend ignoriert.

www.zdfheute.de

The fears have come true: Covid-19 has left hundreds of thousands in Germany with long-term health problems. And now they are largely being ignored.

This is the new world we now find ourselves in. According to the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, there were 250,000 ME/CFS treatment cases in Germany before the pandemic ; today, there are 620,000. Young people and those in their 30s are disproportionately affected. The worst fear during the pandemic—a permanent chronic illness affecting hundreds of thousands in Germany—has come true.

 

[V.R.T.]

ME/CFS: Welcome to the worst-case scenario

Brilliant title.

 

[rvallee]

Brilliant title.

Indeed. I have harped a lot about how this has been predicted and it frustrates me how it's so rare to say it. It was predicted, and this is the worst-case scenario, especially the response from experts and governments. It doesn't matter all that much if it's 1M, 10M or 1B, it's that nothing is being done and the same old failure, the worst-case scenario, continues to dominate completely. Sure it would be worth if 10 more people had their lives ruined by this, or 100, or any number, but it's not the precise number itself because it's already so huge as to be unforgivable negligence.

There is extensive written record of this! But it makes zero difference. Being right or wrong seem to make zero difference, only cultural trends do. In the general public this can be excused, but this is even below those standards, because most people would be outraged if they learned the truth, everyone who does is. It's a cover-up, deliberate, calculated and whose disastrous outcome is obvious.

 

[V.R.T.]

In the general public this can be excused, but this is even below those standards, because most people would be outraged if they learned the truth, everyone who does is. It's a cover-up, deliberate, calculated and whose disastrous outcome is obvious.

Indeed.