Umsatz je Mitarbeiter divides turnover for a period by the number of staff, usually counted as full time equivalents so that part time contracts do not distort the result. It is a crude measure of output per head and it is used for two things, comparing a pharmacy with itself over time and comparing it with a peer group in a Betriebsvergleich. Both comparisons only work if the headcount is defined the same way on each side, which is where most of the confusion comes from.
Turnover per head is also a poor guide on its own, because it says nothing about what was earned on that turnover. A pharmacy with a high figure driven by expensive prescriptions can be doing worse than a neighbour with a lower one, which is why it is read next to the Personalkostenquote rather than alone. It also moves when traffic moves, so a falling Kundenfrequenz lowers it without anyone working less.
For a decision about whether to add a service, there is a more useful version of the same idea. Instead of turnover per head per year, take the revenue of one specific appointment and set it against the staff minutes that appointment actually consumes, including preparation, documentation and the room. That calculation is small enough to be honest, and it can be done before anything is bought.
Two reimbursed services give a sense of the order of magnitude. The pharmazeutische Dienstleistung officially called Standardisierte Risikoerfassung hoher Blutdruck is currently remunerated at 11,20 euro net, and that fee is a negotiated figure which the parties renegotiate rather than a fixed constant. The Impfhonorar for a pharmacy vaccination rises to 11,00 euro from September 2026, up from 10,68 euro, and it is renegotiated in the same way. Both are worth holding next to the minutes a protocol takes, because a fee in that range and an appointment that occupies a pharmacist for a long stretch do not fit together well, whatever the annual turnover per head looks like.
The figures above are the only ones stated here. A benchmark for turnover per employee is not quoted, because a defensible one depends on the peer group, the year and the definition of a full time equivalent, and a number without those three attached tends to be used as if it settled something. The pharmacy's own figure from the previous year, calculated the same way, is the comparison that holds.
This glossary entry is general information about German pharmacy law and practice. It is not legal advice. For binding guidance on your own pharmacy, contact your Landesapothekerkammer.
