Take care of your health

25/01/20130 views

January 25, Lepel /Own. inf./. The outpatient clinic officially serves the Plintovka microdistrict, up to the new houses that have sprung up on Gagarin Street, but the number of people wishing to undergo medical procedures here is many times greater than the number of "registered" patients. Well, how can you refuse elderly people who live in the "old part" of the city, but would it be easy for them to travel to the hospital outside the city.

January 25, Lepel /Own. inf./. The outpatient clinic officially serves the Plintovka microdistrict, up to the new houses that have sprung up on Gagarin Street, but the number of people wishing to undergo medical procedures here is many times greater than the number of "registered" patients. Well, how can you refuse elderly people who live in the "old part" of the city, but would it be easy for them to travel to the hospital outside the city. So they ask for injections or procedures at the "FOK". They write special applications – and their requests are granted. Another group of patients are children.

Two general practitioners, and recently a pediatrician, conduct appointments here. They are assisted by three general practice nurses, as well as a paramedic, who is also known as a doctor's assistant. The paramedic also conducts their own separate appointments, mainly dealing with people with chronic diseases, issuing prescriptions, etc. There is also a medical registrar, a physical therapy nurse, a masseuse, and an exercise therapy instructor. An accoucheur works on a half-time basis, conducting gynecological examinations. The procedural nurse simultaneously works in the day hospital with four beds. But there are so many people who want those beds! A queue is formed – and as a result, the so-called "bed turnover" per day is five people, which is more than twice the norm. The outpatient clinic serves seven thousand people. Last year, 21,600 procedures were carried out in the physical therapy room, 2.5 thousand sessions of therapeutic massage alone, 8,530 procedures were carried out in the day hospital, and 4,060 in the procedural room. General practitioners typically make 14-15 thousand patient visits per year. The pediatrician, who has been working here since April last year, is responsible for 1,063 children and adolescents aged three to eighteen. This does not include students from the lyceum and college.

The physical therapy room is equipped with a DDT apparatus (dynamic currents), used for treating inflammatory diseases, osteochondrosis, and joint ailments; an ultrasound apparatus, laser therapy, magnetotherapy, and sinusoidal modulated currents. The outpatient clinic offers electrocardiogram services. The physical therapy room is also well-equipped, featuring exercise machines for strengthening back and lower limb muscles, a cycle ergometer, a treadmill, a health disc, and other equipment.

Interestingly, two Dutch devices were recently received as humanitarian aid. One is for measuring blood pressure. It is essentially a standard tonometer but with a large screen. The second is an otoscope for examining the ear. This was a kind of "bonus" for the participation of two medical staff members in the joint Belarusian-Dutch project "Matra-2," during which they were trained in basic patient care methods and disease diagnostics.

Furthermore, the outpatient clinic has two computers, installed in the reception area and the pediatrician's office, enabling computerised patient and disease record-keeping and the expansion of the theoretical database.

The team is led by general practitioner Alena Shavura. Annually, improvements, painting, re-equipment, and additions are made, as far as funds permit.

Of course, this is just one link in the district healthcare system, but such small, essential links are indispensable for the entire mechanism.

Uladzimir MIKHNO.

In the photos: Senior nurse Tatsiana Vashkevich and physician assistant Alesya Kanaplyova discuss a new version of the "General Practitioner" software with a computer.

Photo by the author.