There are diseases that are noticeable for the respective patients, but not visible for all others. And there are skin diseases which, due to their clearly visible location on the skin surface, are often easily recognisable to others. Nevertheless, in recent years dermatology has changed from a traditional optical subject, characterized by clinical observation, to a causal-oriented subject. At ever shorter intervals, new therapeutic options are emerging which present dermatology with a multitude of challenges. This raises questions not only about benefits and effectiveness, but also about financing, self-regulation and the holistic well-being of sick people. The decisive factor in all considerations for and against an innovation or change is the sovereignty over well-founded data on the actual supply situation. Both German dermatological associations, the Professional Association of German Dermatologists (Berufsverband der Deutschen Dermatologen, BVDD) and the German Dermatological Society (Deutsche Dermatologische Gesellschaft, DDG), recognized the need for coordinated scientific research in the field of dermatology healthcare with the establishment of the German Center for Health Services Research in Dermatology (Competenzzentrum Versorgungsforschung in der Dermatologie, CVderm) and had already in 2005 set the course for a long-term positioning of dermatological healthcare research.
