The quality control inspections stipulated by §112 and §114 of the Eleventh Social Code satisfy the legislative intention of providing support for both outpatient and in-patient care facilities in enhancing their quality of care. To this end, the MDK (Medical Service of the Statutory Health Insurance Companies) concentrates on advisory aspects in its approach to inspection. At the same time, people in need of care should be protected by the identification of deficient care facilities. While the results of the nation-wide evaluation by the MDS (Medical Service of the Central Associations of the Statutory Health Insurance Companies) document progress in some areas of care, they also reveal the need for further action. If a facility is found to have extreme deficiencies, the inspection can result in a termination of the service contract or even the closing of the facility. In the other cases, the effectiveness of the quality control inspection depends to a large degree on the willingness and ability of the respective care facility to implement systematically the recommendations of the MDK.
