Theme 4 At the Polyclinic
Health services in Russia are represented by state, municipal and private medical units. Medical preventive units representing state and municipal health services include a wide range of medical institutions: hospitals, specialized hospitals, clinics, outpatient clinic, medical institutions of maternity and child protection, medical institutions of urgent and emergency aid, sanitaria and health resorts.
Outpatient medical units are divided into five groups according to the number of patients they can provide with medical care in one shift: local hospitals, district hospitals, municipal hospitals, regional hospitals and polyclinics. To be able to receive medical care free of charge a person is to obtain the certificate of obligatory medical insurance. This certificate is given to every Russian citizen regardless of gender and age.
Polyclinic is a medical preventive institution, main aims of which are: to provide population with diseases’ preventive measures, medical aid at home, diagnostic services and examinations of temporary disability. In general responsibilities of any policlinic are centered on prevention and revelation of diseases among people living on the policlinic responsible territory. People are assigned to the polyclinic according to the place they live work or study and have their personal ‘patient’s card’ containing information about visits to doctors, results of analysis and other relevant information.
According to the age criteria there are polyclinics for children (up to fourteen years old) and for adults. Polyclinics have their own laboratories, X-ray rooms; physiotherapy, surgery and dental departments. Each polyclinic has a number of general practitioners (therapeutists), doctors specialized in some particular medical field (e.g. allergists, oculists, neuropathologists, surgeons etc.) and attached nurses.
To receive medical care at polyclinic one should be registered there. This can be done by phone, personally or through the Internet. To register means to provide information about yourself and to book the date and time of visiting the doctor according to the polyclinic’s timetable. If the person is not sure what specialist he should visit, then he is to register to visit his general practitioner at his local polyclinic.
A therapeutist working day consists of consultation hours to see patients at polyclinic and home visits for vulnerable categories of people. During the consultation a therapeutist asks patients about any complaints they may have and makes notes in the patients’ card. Then he takes patients’ blood pressure, feels his pulse and listens to his lungs and heart. He may also check patients’ temperature. If it is needed for the diagnosis’ definition the therapeutist prescribes the patient to undergo some necessary analysis: blood test, urinalysis, X-ray examination etc. Only after that the diagnosis is put, proper treatment is prescribed and recommendations are given.