– I am opposed to the possibility that anesthesiologists who have obtained specialization in third countries should be able to provide intensive care and anesthesia services in Poland. This will have an impact on the quality of treatment. I suspect that the patients will die – says doctor Grzegorz Siwek, who is in the process of specializing in anaesthesiology.
- At the end of December last year, the law allowing for the employment of doctors and nurses from outside the EU in Poland on simplified terms (including without the recognition of a diploma, without completing or recognizing a post-graduate internship, without passing the LEK or LDEK exam) entered into force.
- Representatives of the Polish medical community protested against these provisions. Prof. Andrzej Matyja, president of the Supreme Medical Council, called employing doctors without professional verification as a “threat to patients”
- – In the field of anesthesiology, accurate decisions need to be made minute by minute (a mistake can cost you a life). It cannot happen that a doctor who has treated in his country in completely different conditions comes to work in Poland – says anesthesiologist Grzegorz Siwek
- More information about the coronavirus can be found on the TvoiLokony home page
Medexpress: Anesthesiologists who specialize in third countries will be able to provide services in Poland. What do you think about that?
Grzegorz Siwek: It worries me a bit. Anesthesiology is a field that is very strictly regulated in Poland. Patients who are in immediate life-threatening condition should be provided with medical care at the highest possible level. Any deviation from the norm or neglect causes deaths of patients. The competence of third country doctors should be improved.
Until now, all doctors from third countries have participated in the recognition of their diploma. I have many colleagues from Ukraine or Belarus who have followed this path and are working with us. The Ministry of Health makes another attempt to cut corners. This will have an impact on the quality of treatment. I suspect the patients will die.
- How much does an anesthesiologist really earn? “I would have to work 400 hours a month”
You are currently working in intensive care. You also participate in the internship for doctors from abroad with the recognition of diplomas …
The doctors from Ukraine told me that they did not even have access to a computer in the hospital. In the field of anesthesiology, you need to make the right decisions minute by minute (a mistake can cost a life).
Adaptation to the treatment conditions in a given country is important. It cannot happen that a doctor who has treated in his country under completely different conditions comes to work in Poland. It’s dangerous. Therefore, we are against the possibility that anesthesiologists who specialize in third countries should be able to provide intensive care and anesthesia services in Poland. We want to maintain the quality of the treatment.
This is a situation unheard of on a European or global scale. Have you considered doing a specialization in another country?
Earlier, I was interested in the conditions for starting the specialization in Sweden. For three years I have been learning Swedish from level A1 to B1. My skills were still not advanced enough for me to start specializing in this country. Specific language certifications are required in Anglo-Saxon countries. In such a country, you also need to undergo an interview. Nowhere is it possible to work without knowing the language. Even in an ordinary service company, it is not possible to work with a person who does not speak the language.
An anaesthesiologist who comes to Poland from abroad must know the Polish language. It is very important in everyday communication. The orders we give to the nurse or team member depend on what medications we give at CPR and whether the patient survives. During anesthesia of a patient in the operating theater, we are on the verge of his life and death. It is a kind of sleep where every parameter of the patient has to be controlled by us and the surgeons.
Committing a mistake can result in death or serious complications for the patient. I hope that the government side will remember. We have been alerting us to staff shortages for at least 5 years. Solving staffing problems by patching holes can contribute to further damage. Currently, our health and patients are strained by a pandemic. Adding more problems will result in more deaths that could be avoided.
Read also:
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- A new forecast for Poland. In the worst scenario, even 54 thousand. victims by June
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