Oncological rehabilitation in Germany is performed after the chemotherapy course completion, after the surgery or at the stage of long-lasting remission. Rehabilitation is an obligatory part of the treatment scheme, as most cancer treatments have a negative effect on healthy tissues. Thus, the rehabilitation program is aimed at eliminating the adverse effects of surgical, radiation and drug therapy, improving patients’ quality of life and restoring their working and social capacities.
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Aims and objectives of oncological rehabilitation
Oncological rehabilitation helps patients to prepare for the treatment course or recover from the undesirable consequences of conventional cancer treatments. Basically, specialists pursue the following aims:
- Coping with physical changes. Loss of organs and scarring after surgeries, lymphedema, and swelling after the lymph nodes removed, weight loss or gaining, etc. may influence negatively self-confidence and self-image. During the cancer rehabilitation program, patients accept the changes and develop a positive attitude towards them. In addition, they learn to use prostheses or take care of the colostomy bags, if necessary.
- Improving the overall quality of life. The multidisciplinary oncology team helps to relieve pain, prevent depression, improve memory, restore healthy sleeping patterns, etc.
- Coping with negative emotional challenges. Patients and their relatives may feel overburdened with the severity of the diagnosis and unfamiliar medical data. Managing cancer-related stress influences positively the whole therapeutic process.
Peculiarities of undergoing rehabilitation in Germany
Long-term experience in rehabilitation along with the availability of state-of-art diagnostic and therapeutic equipment allows German healthcare professionals to follow strictly the basic principles of efficient rehabilitation:
- Integration – combination of the complementary methods, e.g. physiotherapy and pharmacotherapy.
- Control – thorough medical observation and constant assessment of changes in a patient’s condition.
- Staging – adjustment of the intensity of the procedure to a patient’s state and physical ability.
- Systematic character – administration of long-term or repeated courses, combination of inpatient and outpatient procedures.
In Germany, the multidisciplinary oncological rehabilitation is considered to be the standard of care. Medical programs include work of specialists in various medical fields:
- General practitioners.
- Oncologists, cardiologists, gastroenterologists, etc.
- Physiotherapists and reflexologists.
- Speech therapists.
- Specialists in manual therapy.
- Specialists in occupational therapy.
- Psychologists along with work in self-help groups.
Rehabilitation in Germany for foreign patients
Due to the beneficial results, oncological rehabilitation in Germany often attracts patients from abroad. Patients and their relatives need to prepare medical and administrative documents as well as receive the treatment invitation. Thus, it will be more advantageous to contact Booking Health. Booking Health, which is the certified provider of medical tourism, assists patients from 75 countries in receiving medical services in the leading German centers.
Booking Health takes care of the following issues:
- Choosing the specialized rehabilitation center and physician.
- Preliminary preparation of the rehabilitation program.
- Booking an appointment and room in the center.
- Providing favorable costs for medical services, saving up to 50% due to avoiding the additional fees.
- Additional monitoring of the rehabilitation process.
- Organization of additional examinations.
- Help in purchasing necessary medical products.
- Communication with the clinic after completion of the medical program.
- Double-check of the final calculation, returning of unspent funds.
- High-level organizational service: transfer, hotels and plane tickets.
