Homecare with Heart and Mind
Interview with Dr. Vera Flad, Managing Director and Dr. Corina Hutterer, Managing Director of MTS Meditel Service GmbH
Homecare enables medical care where patients feel most comfortable: at home. For more than two decades, MTS Meditel Service GmbH has been offering tailored support programs for patients with rare or complex diseases. In the interview, the two managing directors Dr. Corina Hutterer and Dr. Vera Flad discuss why homecare is a growing market of the future.
Wirtschaftsforum: Dr. Hutterer, Dr. Flad, please briefly introduce yourselves to our readers.
Dr. Vera Flad: I am a PhD biologist and originally come from medical biotechnology. More than four years ago, I switched to Meditel because I was intrigued by the practical work with patients. Before that, I was more involved in research. Here at Meditel, I can directly contribute with my knowledge to make therapies practical for everyday use and to concretely support people.
Dr. Corina Hutterer: I have also been with Meditel for about four years. After my PhD in virology, I initially worked in research and then in the area of clinical and non-interventional studies. I was mainly fascinated by the work at Meditel because here we can really help patients directly. Many people are not familiar with the term ‘patient support programs’, though it is a field with enormous significance and added value.
Wirtschaftsforum: How did Meditel originally come about?
Dr. Corina Hutterer: Meditel was founded in 2001 – initially as a call center in the medical field. However, it was quickly recognized that there was a great need for homecare support in many therapies, especially for rare and complex diseases. Meditel then became one of the first providers to specialize in sophisticated therapies and established a nationwide network of highly qualified nurses to provide and educate patients at home.
Wirtschaftsforum: What milestones were particularly important for this development?
Dr. Corina Hutterer: Firstly, of course, the establishment of this nationwide care network. We also established a comprehensive quality management system, enabling us to collaborate at a high professional level with patients, doctors, clinics, and pharmaceutical companies. And last but not least, Meditel has continuously grown – both in personnel and by expanding the range of therapies we manage. Today, these structures form the foundation of our work.
Wirtschaftsforum: What are currently the biggest challenges?
Dr. Vera Flad: It is particularly important that homecare programs in healthcare are perceived as genuine support – by doctors, patients, and also by payers. This includes having established billing pathways and pharmaceutical companies supporting these programs. The competition in the market is growing, so we consistently focus on quality and excellent training of our staff.
Wirtschaftsforum: To what extent does digitalization play a role in this?
Dr. Corina Hutterer: Digitalization helps us facilitate many processes. However, in healthcare, it is not trivial to work completely paperless because the highest data protection and security requirements apply. Nevertheless, we have already made great strides – for example, we offer physicians data protection-compliant cloud solutions for communication. However, sometimes it fails due to the IT infrastructure of individual clinics or practices. Where it can be used, however, the feedback is very positive.
Wirtschaftsforum: What exactly does your service portfolio include?
Dr. Vera Flad: We offer patient support programs where our nationwide health and nursing professionals work closely with the treating physicians. They specialize in the respective therapies and accompany the patients in the application of their medications at home. This is a huge relief, especially for rare diseases that would require a trip to distant specialty centers. Infusions and injections can also take place in a familiar environment, leading to more autonomy and improving the quality of life of the patients.
Wirtschaftsforum: What goals do you pursue with Meditel for the coming years?
Dr. Corina Hutterer: We want to continuously enhance our service quality and further optimize processes to be able to offer individual and tailor-made care solutions. Additionally, we aim to grow organically – through new therapy areas and customers, but also through strategic partnerships. Another goal is to strengthen our employer brand to attract and retain qualified staff.
Wirtschaftsforum: What values are particularly important to you in corporate leadership?
Dr. Vera Flad: Team spirit is top of the list for us – both in field service and in-house, as the colleagues must be able to rely on each other. Responsibility is also central, as we work in a very sensitive environment. Quality is extremely important to us, as is humanity: Despite all the technology, the patient as an individual human being is at the center of our actions.