Answers before your first appointment
Prescription, co-payment, waiting time, home visits: the questions we hear most often at the desk and on the phone -- with the answer we usually give in person.
Billing
Prescription, co-payment, self-payers
Who pays for treatment depends on how it comes about. Three routes we see in practice.
Scroll table sideways
| Route | What to bring | What you pay |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory prescription | Prescription and health insurance card | Statutory co-payment: 10 percent of the treatment cost plus 10 euros per prescription; waived with an exemption certificate |
| Private prescription or public-sector allowance | A prescription from your doctor | An invoice by schedule of fees that you submit to your insurer |
| Without a prescription | Just an appointment | A self-payer fee that we state before the first treatment |
Booking
How your appointment comes about
Four steps from the first call to the reminder the day before.
Send your request
Call us on +49 30 23125107 or write to praxis@physiopraxis-nord.invalid. Tell us the prescribed treatment and two time slots that suit you.
Call us on +49 30 23125107 or write to praxis@physiopraxis-nord.invalid. Tell us the prescribed treatment and two time slots that suit you.
We look at the treatment time prescribed and how many appointments that makes. Where urgent need is noted, we try to start sooner.
The whole series is booked in one go so the intervals between treatments are right. You get the list in writing.
On request we send a reminder the day before. Cancelling more than 24 hours ahead costs nothing.
Six questions, six clear answers
- Do I need a prescription from a doctor? For physiotherapy, manual therapy, lymphatic drainage and massage billed to a statutory or private insurer, yes -- a practice may only bill these against a prescription. Without one you are welcome as a self-payer, for preventive training, a posture assessment or a single massage. We clarify what makes sense in your case beforehand; if a prescription is needed, we say so before an appointment is booked.
- What will the treatment cost me? Members of a statutory health insurer pay the co-payment set by law: 10 percent of the treatment cost plus 10 euros per prescription. If you hold an exemption certificate, present it and the co-payment does not apply. Privately insured patients receive an invoice by schedule of fees and submit it themselves. Self-payers are told the fee before the first treatment, in writing on request.
- How long is the wait for a first appointment? For a first appointment we usually plan one to two weeks; equipment-based physiotherapy can take longer because machine time is limited. Where the prescription is marked as urgent, we try to start sooner. If you can come at short notice, say so on the phone -- we keep a waiting list for cancellations.
- What should I bring to the first appointment? The original prescription, your insurance card and, if you have one, your exemption certificate. Bring comfortable clothing you can move in and a large towel. Earlier findings such as X-rays or surgical reports help with the first assessment but are not a requirement. Allow about 15 minutes more for the first appointment than for the ones that follow.
- Do you make home visits? Yes, within the city of Kiel. The prescription must carry the doctor's note for a home visit; without it the insurer may not cover it. A travel allowance set by law is added for home visits. Appointments are usually in the morning, when they can be combined into one route. We need a clear area of about two by two metres -- we bring everything else.
- What happens if I have to cancel? Up to 24 hours before the appointment a cancellation costs nothing; a call or short message is enough. After that we charge a missed-appointment fee, because the time was reserved for you and rarely finds a new taker at such short notice. Health insurers do not reimburse this fee. When in doubt, cancel early and get back in touch -- a series can almost always be rescheduled.
Home visits
Treatment at home
A home visit is not a smaller treatment, it is the same one somewhere else. We work with what is there: a firm chair, a clear area beside the bed, a table to lean on. Exercises for the time between appointments are matched to your home -- to the stairs you climb every day, not to equipment you do not own.
Before your visit
Well prepared for the first appointment
- Bring the original prescription -- a copy or a photo is not enough for billing.
- Choose clothing you can move in; for treatment of the back the shoulder needs to be free.
- Note down your symptoms: when they appear, how long they last, what eases them.
- Arrive in good time -- the first assessment needs about 15 minutes extra.
- Mention medication and earlier operations, they affect what we are allowed to do.
Still no answer?
These pages go deeper into single topics.
Your question is not here?
Write us a short note about your case -- we usually reply within 24 hours and will say honestly if another practice or a doctor is the right next step.