German Military Lacks Sufficient Medical Facilities for War, Official Says
The German military does not have enough medical facilities to meet the needs of a war, according to the commander of the health services of the German Armed Forces, Johannes Backus. In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Backus stated that the five military hospitals in Germany are insufficient and that a significant portion of the medical personnel would be needed at the front in the event of a war.
In a war scenario, the main burden would fall on civilian hospitals, said Generalstabsarzt Backus, who is also the deputy inspector of the medical service. “Germany would be a logistical hub for troops and wounded transport in such a scenario” he added.
Backus called for a closer cooperation with non-military health institutions, stating that the German military needs strong civilian partners for the care of the wounded and the sick. He mentioned nine clinics of the occupational accident insurance, 36 university clinics with highly specialized care and the large-scale providers with more than 30,000 inpatient cases per year as potential partners.
These hospitals, he said, need to be specifically prepared to support the German military in the event of an emergency, in terms of organization, technology and digital infrastructure.
Backus even warned of the risk of attacks on German hospitals, citing the threat of cyberattacks, supply chain failures, espionage and so-called hybrid threats that could also affect civilian institutions. “In particular, hospitals are at risk, we must assume that the threats will increase and will not be deterred by moral hurdles” he warned.
The chairman of the Association of University Clinics in Germany, Jens Scholz, echoed Backus’ appeal, stating that the medical service must be able to rely on the support of highly capable civilian clinics in the event of a crisis. “However, these clinics can only take on this role if they are prepared in terms of content, personnel and material” Scholz said.
The head of the University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein, in a similar statement, emphasized the need for a comprehensive coordination, digital control of patient flows and robust infrastructure to achieve a resilient healthcare system in times of peace, crisis and war.
Backus and Scholz both called for the national hospitals to be specifically prepared for crisis situations, with Scholz stating, “The defense capability does not end in the barracks, it begins also in the emergency room or the operating room.