No. 10, 2014
CENTRE PLUS NEWS Health Care Services (Ambulance and Primary Health Care)
Lithuanian national health in-
stitutions provide personal and public health care services and carries out pharmaceutical activities. Health care is public, private and budgetary. These services are provided by health care institutions which are responsible for the basic medical care and provide planned health care services. Anyone who is registered at the primary health care facility which had entered into an agreement with the National Health Insurance Fund receives health care services for free. Health care services can be provided on the primary and secondary levels. Primary health care services are available to all residents of Lithuania and are focused on the main health problems of patients. Primary individual and public health care is organized by municipal executive bodies. First of all a patient consults his family doctor who decides what kind of help the patient needs. The family doctor must know the main features of diseases and conditions which are prescribed to his competence and preventive measures. He must be familiar with the indications of the most commonly used medications, as well as potential side effects. Family doctor services are paid by Health Insurance Fund.
Existing law provides that the patient has the right to choose a primary health care facility and a doctor. So, to register at a clinic and become the client of it, choose a health care facility, its unit and contact a reception desk, where you shall fill out an application to receive a treatment by a chosen doctor. An identity document, i.e. permit for temporary or permanent residence in Lithuania must be presented at the time of registration. If you are the patient of any health care facility of Lithuania, but you want to get an advice from the professional doctor of other clinic, then you need to have your family physician`s referral and to register for consultation at the other clinic within 1 month
from the date of referral issue. The referral of the family physician gives an opportunity to register and get a free consultation within 30 days in any health care facility in Lithuania. If you want to receive an immediate service or cannot wait, then you can be given a paid service. In recent years, it is rapidly increasing the number of private primary health care facilities, which employ one or more family doctors. These companies make their contracts with health insurance funds, so the services of family doctor are free of charge. Among largest and most popular private health care facilities in Vilnius are Medical Diagnostic and Treatment Centre (www. medcentras.lt), Northway Medical Centre (www.nmc.lt).
Centre Plius News No.10, 2014
It is important to mention the fact that primary health care services are provided by out-patient facilities accredited for primary health care, i.e. medical centres, out-patient facilities, clinics, women’s health consulting clinics, primary health care centres, GP surgeries and mental health centres. Contacts of these institutions can be found on following website: http://www.sam.lt/go.php/Asmens_sveikatos_prieziuros_ istaigos. Also we would like to mention the Vilnius University Emergency Hospital, to which you can turn at any time of the day, when disaster strikes. Address: St. Šiltnamių 29, Vilnius. More information on website: www.rvul.lt or by phone +370 5 216 9069. The secondary level health care services are provided by health care professionals at out-patient facilities. To this level are ranked such medical specialists as otolaryngologists, ophthalmologists, neurologists, cardiologists, pulmonologists, allergists, etc. Secondary healthcare services can be provided to a patient at general clinics, patients’ consulting clinics and at home. Specialist consultation (visit) is paid. If, within three months, due to the same disease the patient turns to a specialist for a few times, it is paid for one consultation. Meanwhile, the tertiary level health care services are highly specialized and provided by tertiary treatment facilities (e.g., Vilnius University Hospital Santariškių klinikos, Vilnius University Emergency Hospital, , etc.). These services are
provided to a patient during his visits to a health care facility. Thus, tertiary (specialized) out-patient health care services are provided by consultancy clinics adjacent to the specialized health care institutions, and the doctors or consultants of hospitals. Doctors or consultants only accept the patients who have the referral from a primary or secondary level health care physician. The tertiary (specialized) out-patient health care services - consultation (visit) to a specialist,
are covered by health insurance funds. However, if within three months, due to the same disease the patient turns to the specialist for a number of times, it is paid for one consultation. It is important to mention the fact that for emergency medical aid, doctor’s referral is not necessary. The emergency medical services are free of charge in Lithuania, so feel free to call to the 112 in times of disaster, which operates around the clock. Good
health
to
you
all!
Health services for third-country nationals
Centre Plius News No.10, 2014
Health services are among the
most useful and important services in everyday life, because health is one of the indicators of human life in society. If a person has a health problem, first of all he turns to doctors. In this article we will discuss what third-country nationals residing in Lithuania think about Lithuanian health care system, and what positive or negative experiences they have. Russian citizen K. M. living with her daughter in Lithuania for more than five years told that she used medical services very often: “Since I live in Lithuania for a long time I definitely had to seek medical help. I am registered in a clinic, and I liked that I could choose where I wanted to register. I felt respected and had the freedom of choice. ” When asked if she could share an important event, she openly told: “Several times I called an ambulance. Last time it was when my daughter, while playing in the yard, had broken her front teeth. We had not to wait very long, the ambulance arrived very fast. A very helpful and good-hearted nurse reassured me, injected anesthetic to my daughter and brought us to the Žalgiris clinics, where my daughter had got an appropriate treatment.” K. M. emphasized that she had always met a pleasant and helpful staff at reception. “Once when I was unable to wait, I was suggested just to ask a doctor, maybe he could examine my daughter right now. To my great surprise, the doctor immediately examined my daughter and gave the necessary advice.
I was fascinated by fast, high-quality and professional help. I think I was always lucky with the doctors: both in complex and everyday situations. Russian woman was happy that she never survived the cultural differences because she was not a citizen of Lithuania. Asked if she had had to pay extra money for medical services, she very honestly shared: “I work in Lithuania so health care services are free for me and my child and we receive them. The doctors never required to pay any extra money. Only occasionally, when I turned to private clinics, then I paid for services. But I was really happy with the treatment, I had got. You get medical service very quickly and therefore you have to pay for it.” When asked to summarize her experience, K. M. firmly expressed her opinion: “I have heard a lot of dissatisfaction with
the medical industry and health care services in Lithuania, but my personal experience suggests that it may be quite the opposite. Also I have heard that doctors are low-paid. It is tempting to believe that this situation will change, because when the doctor feels well his patient feels better as well.” Media and visual arts student from Belarus A. P. acknowledged having both good and not very pleasant experience dealing with health care institutions.
Centre Plius News No.10, 2014
“In one clinic, where I had to turn was such a system: first, you pay for a visit to the doctor, and then somebody escorts you to him. I liked that because there were not long queues and the doctors examined me even at the same day. I was impressed that one doctor allowed me to do all tests first and then to pay for services. He was really very understanding, and The worker of Vilnius AmbuI will always remember him.” lance Station was happy to say that so far there were no inciHowever, the student admitted dents with foreigners, where one that she once had an unpleas- or the other side would remain ant experience simply because unsatisfied. “In all the years I that she was a foreigner and did cannot remember a single alien not speak Lithuanian. “When I that somehow we had excluded needed help and went to a med- from the total number. We help ical clinic, a doctor was very all people and everyone gets the unfriendly and was not inclined first aid, as it belongs. A lot of to communicate. She was reluc- young people who speak foreign tantly responding to my questions and only commented that “everything is clear.” I suspect that this hostility was due to differences in language, she did not like to speak Russian. I felt her hostility and in the future I really do not want to meet with the same doctor”, - her bad experience shared the student.
languages work in our team, so there are no problems of miscommunication”, - her best practices shared women. Health care is a very important thing, but it is equally important that the medical staff providing it is tolerant and have responsible attitude towards the people who need help, whether they are the Lithuanians or TCNs.
The newspaper is published, implementing the project “Consultation and information centre PLUS” according the European Fund for the Integration of third-country nationals, annual Programme 2012
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