GPs support coordination in POZ, but ...

A larger pool of diagnostic tests, the possibility of consulting specialists in various fields, easier access to prophylaxis, education and dietary advice - this is the coordinated care in POZ in a nutshell. And in theory. Because in practice, the facilities' capabilities are limited, the staff crisis is deepening, and the greatest enemy of the project is ... the lack of details and proper preparation.

Family doctors associated in the Zielonogórskie Agreement Federation, after analyzing the ordinance on the project of coordinated care in POZ, submitted for public consultations, believe that, in principle, a good step towards facilitating the path of treatment by patients has fallen on details. Or rather the lack of them, because it is currently difficult to assess the possibility of implementing coordinated care in individual facilities, since there are more unknowns than precisely defined issues.

- At this stage, the regulation only opens the door to discussion about possible ways of implementation. As an organization associating 1/3 of all clinics, we collected comments from doctors, and then - during a direct meeting with the President of the National Health Fund, we present them and propose options that can be implemented and based on real resources of the centers. Nevertheless, we consider the idea of ​​coordinated care to be good, but the project in its current shape is impossible to implement in all facilities, and such a promise has been made to patients - adds Jacek Krajewski, president of the Zielonogórskie Agreement Federation.

What exactly is it about? Doctors pay attention to, among others the work schedule of specialists, which in their opinion is unnecessary and has no justification, and may discourage specialists from starting cooperation with POZ facilities. Equally worrying is the abnormally low valuation of the coordinator, which at the current inflation level makes recruiting a qualified person (!) To work with the patient unrealistic. In addition, there is a need for support from the National Health Fund, i.e. the establishment of a unit in each branch of the Fund responsible for assisting institutions in implementing the coordination project, through, inter alia, preparing a list of specialists ready to support family doctors. There are also concerns about the procedure of reporting by service providers, which, according to the PZ Federation, should be limited to expressing the will to be ready to provide services as part of coordination in the POZ. It will also be a challenge to keep medical records for which there are no guidelines yet.

Doctors also call for a wide-ranging educational campaign for both doctors and patients. The Zielona Góra Agreement Federation also intends to educate representatives of POZ units belonging to the organization, and is also planning meetings for patients. There are more comments, but the rest will be presented during the meeting with the National Health Fund.

- We must remember that introducing coordination to POZ is a process. The reality of patients from family medicine clinics will not improve from October 1, because at the moment we do not have such opportunities in many facilities, both in terms of technical and financial facilities. Nevertheless, you have to work out the path of implementation together, but the devil is in the details. The better we refine them now and ensure an appropriate level of education for doctors and patients, the easier it will be for us to implement solutions that are good for the sick - adds Tomasz Zieliński, vice president of the Zielona Góra Agreement Federation.

Will the institutions belonging to the Federation of Zielona Góra Agreement sign contracts and join the coordination project?

- As part of the consultation, we shared our comments collected from a diverse community of family medicine specialists. We believe that there is still time to implement reasonable suggestions so that coordination can be properly and effectively implemented. For now, we are waiting for the meeting with the President of the National Health Fund to discuss dubious issues - adds Jacek Krajewski, president of FPZ.

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