Outpatient Therapy

To possibly start an outpatient therapy in Germany, one has to have a health insurance and has to speak to a psychotherapist during his or her open consultation hours first. Publicly health insured patients may visit outpatient psychotherapists directly during their posted consultation hours, or after having scheduled an appointment via phone call in advance. You do not need a referral from another doctor. It is good to take your health insurance card with you. The therapist will assess your situation and then recommend further treatment options.

Here you will find a selection of free search options and websites, offered by professional German health institutions, that support you in finding outpatient psychotherapists near you and give information about psychotherapy in general. Note that most of them, unfortunately, are only available in German. Consider asking a German and English speaking friend for help? 

If you aren’t able to arrange an initial appointment (open consultation) with a qualified psychotherapist yourself, you may also contact the appointment service of the KVNO („Terminservicestelle der Kassenärztlichen Vereinigung Nordrhein“) for assistance:  https://www.ptk-nrw.de/patientenschaft/terminservicestellen. The appointment service´s task is to schedule an appointment for you within four weeks. The downside of using this service is that you can no longer personally choose the therapist or the date and time of your appointment. That’s why it is advisable to first contact a therapist of your choice and set up an appointment yourself, if possible, before contacting the KVNO appointment service.