Varianten der Demokratie und Demokratisierung des Gesundheitswesens

This study analyses the understanding of democracy and democratisation in the context of healthcare, with its qualitative research focusing on the significance and future design of institutionalised patient participation at the level of health policy decision-making processes. Problem-centred interviews with key players in the German healthcare system and the analysis of interpretative patterns ('Deutungsmuster') provide insights into the different variants of the understanding of democracy, which can be traced back to fundamental tensions within the healthcare system.