I would like to ask some guy who made the laws in Germany what is the logical reason for which an employe who is ill has to spend most of his illness time walking from one doctor to the other and bringing some certificate to the work place. Let say that you are ill: it is not enough that you call your boss saying you will be absent for the next two days. You have to go to a doctor, wait there a couple of hours, let him/her visit you, let the doctor tell you that you are sick, get a piece of paper which says that you are sick and for how long and bring it to your work place or, in best case, mail it to the human resources people of your company within three days from the begin of your absence from work. Then, you are safe.