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Health Minister Adam Niedzielski announced changes in primary health care (POZ). The details of the reform aroused a lot of emotions in the medical community, and opinions are divided. “(…) the current shape of the project is rather an experiment rather than a well-thought-out and discussed with many environments idea” – comments Jacek Krajewski, specialist in family medicine.
- From 1 July this year. the primary care physician will be able to refer the patient to more tests. The list of reimbursed diagnostic tests includes, among others ferritin
- The medic will also be able to perform a quick test on the spot to determine the child’s CRP level and the presence of bacteria responsible for angina
- Most doctors assess the direction of changes positively, although they do not hide that the project raises questions
- «We know nothing about financing. How much money will the clinic receive, how much research will be enough, (…) how much time IT specialists need to adapt the software »- lists Joanna Zabielska-Cieciuch, family doctor from Białystok
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage
Changes in POZ from July 2022.
Prevention, change of financing, close contact between the family doctor and specialists – these are the three most important slogans of the POZ reform, which was announced on June 20 by the head of the Ministry of Health (Ministry of Health), Adam Niedzielski.
From 1 July this year. the list of diagnostic tests that may be ordered by a health care practitioner under the National Health Fund will be expanded. As part of the fund, it will be possible to check the level of ferritin and vitamin B12 and the presence of anti-CCP antibodies (a marker used in the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis), anti-HCV (hepatitis C) and the Helicobacter pylori antigen in the stool. Doctors will also have at their disposal a quick CRP test (for children under 6 years of age) and a Strep-test (which detects group A streptococci, which is responsible for the majority of angina cases), which they will be able to perform on-site in the office.
You can also do the angina test yourself at home. You can buy the ANGINA STREP A diagnostic test at Medonet Market.
In addition, the family doctor will be able to refer the patient to a chest computed tomography scan, but only if the patient is after an X-ray, the result of which suggests changes that need to be verified with a more precise examination.
Preventive programs will also be changed. – 600 thousand I consider people who benefited from the Prevention 40 Plus program as insufficient. At the very beginning of the program, we formulated the success criteria as the participation of 2 million people, said the head of the Ministry of Health.
As he added, the questionnaires completed by patients show that they expected greater involvement on the part of health care institutions and appreciation of the fact that they used the program. – In late September and early October, a lottery will be held for those who took part in the full survey, that is, they not only filled in the questionnaire, but also carried out the research – assured Niedzielski.
The “encouragement” will also be given to the POZ themselves. Facilities will receive bonuses for high attendance in preventive programs (apart from the above, also in the prevention of cervical cancer and circulatory diseases).
Early diagnosis of diseases, including cancer, improves patient prognosis. Get tested. You can find a heart disease and cancer test package at Medonet Market.
– GPs will receive bonuses, additional funding if patients benefit from preventive examinations to a large extentif there is a clear increase in interest, because the role of a family doctor is to take care of the patient also in this way proactive – said the Minister of Health.
Another change will be the increase of the group eligible for research (in the case of heart disease diagnostics) and the expansion of the competences of nurses who will be able to perform some of the services under the programs independently.
– The determinants of the primary health care reform (…) will be based primarily on increasing the scope of prevention in the population, changing the philosophy of paying for services, i.e. fees for specific medical services instead of lump sum payments, changing the way of managing chronically ill patients, there is to be more diagnostics and coordinated care – he concluded Adam Niedzielski.
Physicians’ reactions to the announcement of changes in primary health care
Doctors reacted quickly to the health minister’s announcements. Many of them responded positively to the proposal, although medics admit that the project raises a lot of questions.
«We know nothing about financing. How much money will the clinic getHow long will the tests be enough, or only in the first days of the month, we will order, when there will be an order of the President of the National Health Fund, how much time IT specialists need to adapt the software, will there be annexes to contracts – lists Joanna Zabielska-Cieciuch, family doctor from Białystok.
In her opinion, the proposed changes are positive and the environment has been waiting for them for a long time. The question is whether everyone will get them. «Will there be enough staff and will there be proper financing? (…) How many doctors will retire from January? » – asks the doctor, noting that he is sure in rural centers and smaller towns it will be more difficult to organize POZ coordination.
Dr. Michał Chudzik, an internist and cardiologist, also speaks positively about the changes in POZ. As he admits, he himself tries to “manage the health” of patients and encourage them to preventive care. «Success in POZ or AOS consists in organizing – planning and carrying out research and visits (coordinator). I am “fighting” for pts, I am glad that he came to me – says the doctor, adding that “active management” in POZ is a good direction of the reform.
The expert added that the key to success is the patient’s interest in prophylaxis, making him aware of why it is so important, “adequately to the ability to understand sometimes difficult medical content”. As he added, however, patient education does not exist in an effective form.
Jacek Krajewski, a family medicine specialist and president of the Zielona Góra Agreement Federation, has more doubts about the reform of POZ. Although he considers introducing changes necessary for the proper functioning of primary healthcare, “the current shape of the project bears the hallmarks of an experiment rather than a well-thought-out and discussed with many environments idea to improve its functioning”. «Let’s not create a POZ of two speeds»- appeals the doctor.
We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time, we asked Orina Krajewska what, according to her, a holistic approach to health is. How to combine the three aspects – body, spirit and mind to enjoy balance and good health? You will hear about this and many other aspects of the topic in the latest episode of our podcast.