Health Ministry's anti-corruption strategy, including dispatching undercover patients

The idea of sending "undercover patients" to hospitals is in fact a part of the anti-corruption strategy that the Ministry of Health has to implement by 2020, Health Minister Sorina Pintea said on Tuesday. "It's not my idea; it's part of a strategy that the Ministry of Health must implement by 2020 - the story with the mysterious patient. We've already started these checks and I have some negative examples, and it's not only doctors," Pintea told Romania TV private broadcaster over the phone. She mentioned the example of a person who went to a hospital for a mandatory physical examination required to take driving classes who was asked to pay the legal charge plus a speed extra to a member of the auxiliary staff. Sending undercover patients to hospitals began three weeks ago, Pintea said, adding that five such actions had taken place so far. "At this point, a person got out of the hospital ... (...) It is part of the anti-corruption strategy that we have to implement, and when the patient's satisfaction rate falls, eventually we have to take some measures, we must also raise new questions (...) Because of some people who do not follow the rules all who work in the medical system should not suffer. In the end, we have to learn that there are some rules and we have to follow them," said Pintea, adding that she meant only the medical staff asking patients for a bribe to do their job. AGERPRES (RO - author: Catalina Matei, editor: Florin Marin; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)