The integrated computerized system of the OAY now allows the evaluation of a multitude of data in order to ensure the sustainability of the NHS, said the Minister of Health, Michalis Damianos, on Wednesday, in his greeting at a conference organized by EDEK for health and NHS on the topic “Challenges and Perspectives”.
The Minister of Health stated that the NHS is undoubtedly one of the most important social reforms of the Republic of Cyprus, noting that in the context of its supervisory role , the Ministry of Health carries out a systematic evaluation of the health system in order to ensure its unobtrusive optimization.
Until today, Mr. Damianou continued, the assurance of an integrated package of health services has been achieved, as a result of the positive response of health providers and suppliers of medical and pharmaceutical products. He added that the continuous enrichment of the services provided since the beginning of the implementation of the NHS, has received significant recognition from the patients, as demonstrated by the now computerized reports of the use of the system.
The Minister of Health pointed out that in order to ensure the viability of the NHS, there should also be the necessary control over the use of the system both in terms of avoiding abuses and ensuring the quality of the services provided, stating that the integrated OAY's computerized system now allows the evaluation of multiple data to achieve these goals.
“The effort to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the system will be successful, through the utilization of the evaluation of the computerized medical procedure, for the documented development of targeted actions to combat the exploitation of the System and to ensure quality,” said Mr. Damianou.
At the same time, he said that an important contribution to the effective implementation of the NHS, is the unhooking from the negative consequences of the pre-existing segmentation of the market of medicines and medical technology products in the private and public sector, which, as he said, had been established for decades and had led to the deforestation of the market , shortages and inequalities in access.
“The NHS is the most basic infrastructure with a dynamic convergence of the provided health services in achieving the goal of continuously upgrading the health level of the citizens”, said the Minister of Health, adding that this dynamic cannot be maintained without the provision of a long-term assessment of health needs and the adequacy of available resources to cover them, so that there is thorough guidance on how the NHS will adapt to current needs.
“The ultimate goal is to ensure of the financial viability and the quality of the services provided by the Health Systems”, said Mr. Damianou.
The President of EDEK, Marinos Sizopoulos, made a historical review of the course of GeSY and stated that since 1968, EDEK, with Vasos Lyssaridis, requested the offer of high-level medical services to all citizens with free access and choice of doctor and hospital.
Mr. Sizopoulos pointed out that the suggestions from EDEK are for the benefit of patients, noting that “GeSY is one of the conquests of our country and we should let's take care with correct and constructive suggestions so that it can meet our expectations”.
Speaking about the NHS, he noted that today not all patients have access to it and that there has been an increase in the budget, wondering if the level of services offered to patients has also increased. He also noted that there are abuses and squandering of NHS resources that endanger even the lives of patients, while he even touched on the issue of waiting lists.
He stated that immediate corrections should be made to the NHS within the framework of timetables, saying, among other things, that the status of personal doctors should be changed, there should be direct patient access to the specialist doctor, prescriptions should also be made by doctors outside GeSY and that there should be a definition of uniform pricing for the services offered.
The President of the Health Insurance Organization (OHI), Stavros Michael, stated that the challenges of the NHS “are undoubtedly many and important since it affects professionally a very significant number of health professionals and at the same time affects the daily life of every citizen who applies to the System for to receive services”.
He noted that in addition to the general challenges, the experience of the first five years of operation of the NHS has highlighted other challenges specific to the System, such as good patient access to services, the quality of services, the enrichment of the service package, the moral phenomenon hazard which favors in some cases the misuse of services, the need for uniformity in the provision of services by health professionals, the promotion of specialization and the maintenance of an economically viable system.
“Without seeking any attempt to assign blame, it is particularly important to recognize that an integral part of the challenges is also the enlightenment and culture cultivation of our compatriots so that their entire behavior in the System is appropriate,” said Mr. Michael.
Indicated that in this context the Board of Directors of the Organization is completing within the next period the strategic plan of the Organization which includes the recognition of the challenges and the necessary actions are recorded that were promoted or will be promoted in the foreseeable future.
The President of the Pancypriot Medical Association (PIS), Petros Agathangelou, stated that there are recommendations and diagnoses to improve the NHS, saying that transparency is needed for better functioning of the System. He questioned whether there is geographic equality in offering services to all patients, but also accessibility.
At the same time, Mr. Agathangelou said that the challenges are quality, accessibility and planning needs for patients that should be determined. “There are too many fronts and we should bring everyone together”, he said, noting that the utilization of the private and public sectors is “out of the blue”.
The General Executive Director of OKYpY, Kypros Stavridis, said that OKypY is the backbone of the NHS, with nine hospitals across Cyprus, with more than 7500 employees and more than half a million patients every year. He noted that the financial autonomy of OKYpY is the Organization's biggest challenge through a thorough action plan to eliminate the operational deficit.
Mr. Stavridis, analyzing the Organization's goals , said that these include the rationalization of resource management, the digital transition, the certification/accreditation of hospitals, the modernization of medical equipment and building infrastructure, cooperation with university institutions, the improvement of the patient experience and the cultivation control culture.
At the same time, Mr. Stavridis said that “we are here to help every patient in need”, saying that the ultimate goal is for OKYPY to become a modern and sustainable Organization.
GeSY Supervisory Commissioner, Christodoulos Kaisis, stated that there have been abuses of GeSY, noting that “there cannot be legislation and illegalities”. He pointed out that, as long as there are illegalities, abuses by both providers and beneficiaries must continue. Mr. Kaisis added that there should be control, but also information and training of both providers and beneficiaries.
He also mentioned that public hospitals should they are, in a good sense, competing with the private sector to improve their services to patients.
The speakers' presentations were followed by an open discussion and questions from the audience. .
Source: KYPE
