Merzig loses inpatient psychiatric care: What happens to the patients?

Merzig loses inpatient psychiatric care: What happens to the patients?

The SHG Clinic in Merzig will temporarily close its inpatient psychiatric unit on June 1st. This decision was confirmed by management yesterday according to a report in the Saarbrücker Zeitung. The closure is in response to ongoing staffing issues that have been known for some time. For two years now, Merzig Psychiatry has mainly employed fee-based doctors, meaning that costs have almost tripled.

Overall, all psychiatric patients who are admitted as inpatients are to be transferred to the SHG clinic in Völklingen. The clinic had already taken over 20 beds there, and the remaining eight beds in Merzig are now being added. Health Minister Magnus Jung (SPD) emphasized the importance of providing care for mentally ill people close to home and informed the Ministry of Health about the situation. Alternative solutions are urgently sought to ensure that the SHG's supply mandate is fulfilled.

Background to the closure

The closure of the inpatient psychiatric unit comes in a context of financial challenges. The Merziger SHG Clinic has been in financial difficulties for a long time and filed for bankruptcy in the summer of 2023. The clinic originally planned to close obstetrics and psychiatric services completely, but decided to maintain basic care. Due to full capacity, this was often not able to accommodate acute patients.

A self-administration procedure is running at the same time and was opened on October 1, 2023. Loud [shg-kliniken.de](https://www.shg-kliniken.de/pressemitigung/insolvenzplan-verabschiedet-shg-klinikum-merzig-schli est-self-administration-procedure-successful-from/?tx_news_pi1%5BactbackPid%5D=1&cHash=d47ef7109bcd61c17dfd6147c26c4f6f) The insolvency plan was unanimously accepted by all creditors and confirmed by the Sulzbach district court. The procedure is expected to be lifted in April 2024.

Future prospects

SHG will continue to focus on operational challenges and restructuring measures, with Managing Director Bernd Mege emphasizing the importance of the insolvency plan for sustainable restructuring. It is planned that SHG will remain the main shareholder with 74.9%, while the Merzig-Wadern district will take over 25.1% of the shares. The aim is to secure a fully-fledged hospital in Merzig and to improve the quality of care in the long term.

With this measure, the clinic is responding to the increased challenges caused by corona-related slumps in income, declining sales and rising costs due to inflation and geopolitical crises, such as the war in Ukraine.

The situation remains tense and those responsible are working to find solutions to ensure mental health care in the region in the future. SR.de reports that the problems with staffing and the clinic's financial stability will need to be addressed intensively in the coming weeks.