Medexpress message summary - 09/12/2022

The first batch of COVID-19 vaccines in the Omikron BA.1 variant has arrived at the warehouses of the Governmental Agency for Strategic Reserves. 450,000 doses were delivered to Poland. The next transport is scheduled for this week. Vaccines will only be used as a booster. The Ministry of Health is about to present the rules of vaccination in the group over 12 years of age.

The Permanent Committee of the Council of Ministers adopted a bill on quality in healthcare and patient safety. The bill should be submitted to the Sejm in September. If approved, it will probably be signed by the president in November. The act will include, inter alia, provisions that will make it possible to introduce the no-fault principle. It means no sanctions against medical personnel in the event of adverse reactions occurring in a patient. As explained by the Minister of Health, Adam Niedzielski, for a patient this means a quick procedure of claiming compensation for medical errors.

The Ministry of Health is expanding the pilot of the cardiology network. A draft regulation on this matter was submitted for consultation. So far, procedures and standards for patient management have been developed in the Mazowieckie Voivodeship. Now the pilot program will also cover the following voivodeships: Dolnośląskie, Łódzkie, Małopolskie, Pomorskie, Śląskie and Wielkopolskie.

The US Food and Drug Administration has issued a safety alert regarding cases of squamous cell carcinoma and lymphomas in the scar tissue around breast implants. The FDA asks you to report worrying symptoms to doctors. The agency knows less than 50 cases of both types of cancer combined in the scar tissue that forms around the implant. Some patients were diagnosed even several years after the operation. Disturbing symptoms included swelling, pain, and the appearance of lumps or skin lesions.