By 2020, general practitioners will be working in Belarus instead of district therapists, Olga Marshalko, Head of the Human Resources Policy and Educational Institutions Department of the Ministry of Health, told reporters, as reported by a BELTA correspondent.
By 2020, general practitioners will be working in Belarus instead of district therapists, Olga Marshalko, Head of the Human Resources Policy and Educational Institutions Department of the Ministry of Health, told reporters, as reported by a BELTA correspondent.
According to Olga Marshalko, the primary healthcare sector in Belarus is currently transitioning to the general practitioner model, with the active development of general medical practice, an equivalent of family medicine. "By 2020, all district therapists will be retrained and continue to work as general practitioners. The project involves the coordinated work of a whole team – a doctor, a physician assistant, and a nurse. We expect this project to enable us to provide high-quality medical care and pay more attention to each patient," she said.
According to her, active training of relevant specialists is currently underway. "The training of general practitioners at medical universities begins from the 6th year. These specialists undergo training in general practitioner residency, then complete an internship, and subsequently begin working as general practitioners. This is the first method of specialist training. The second is carried out through advanced training and retraining of already working doctors," informed Olga Marshalko.
She emphasized that the institution of general practitioners has existed in the country for a long time, and it is gradually developing and improving. "More than half of our primary healthcare staff are already working as general practitioners. We are also actively developing the physician assistant institution. The work of a team of professionals – a doctor, a physician assistant, and a nurse – is becoming increasingly widespread," explained the Head of Department.
At the same time, Olga Marshalko assured that specialists from polyclinics will not disappear. "We have carefully studied the experience of countries where a similar system also operates. We do not plan to remove specialists from polyclinics; their number will simply remain as required based on the existing needs and established standards. There is no need to worry that everything will be confined to the general practitioner. If a patient, as prescribed by the doctor, needs a consultation with a specialist, such a consultation at the primary care level will be provided. There will be no situation where polyclinics are left without specialists," she concluded.