General practice

After quitting smoking two years ago and saving the money he would have otherwise spent on cigarettes, a man living in the western province of İzmir has turned his 2004 model vehicle into a caravan.

Mehmet Ardil, a 38-year-old auto electrician, decided to quit smoking two packs of cigarettes a day when he became a father of twin boys.

GPs are no longer required to disclose their mobile phones to be called at any time. In the evenings and at weekends, patients will be able to call medical practices with which their GP has contracted. The limits also fall for the referrals for dispensary patients.

Rallies were held in nine Slovenian cities on 10 January in support of the preservation of public healthcare amidst a shortage of general practitioners and general underfunding and understaffing, but the country managed to avert even more severe disruption as doctors called off a strike that would have shut down most non-essential services for 24 hours.

Long queues of patients lining up since early hours to sign up for a general practitioner at one of the units of the Ljubljana Community Health Centre have thrown spotlight on an acute crisis in Slovenia's healthcare.

As of today, every general practitioner in Bulgaria who has a contract with the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) may give a referral for a free PCR test. The amendments were published in the State Gazette and enter into force retroactively -  from November 1.

A flu epidemic is being declared throughout the country as of 6 March, Friday, until 11 March, Wednesday.

This means schools, and pregnancy and post-natal counselling centres will be closed, preventive medical check-ups and vaccinations will be suspended, as will elective surgery and visiting hours at hospitals, BNR reported. 

By the end of the summer, with the issue of compulsory health cards for students, a worrying topic is posed - every second doctor is over 51 years old. The data is from the Bulgarian Medical Association. Over 60% of people in white aprons quickly and safely advance to the "third age" column. One-quarter of the doctors are already in retirement age, informs NOVA.

Another 4-year term for GPs to acquire General Medicine if they do not already have one. The Parliament extended the deadline, among with amendments to the Law on Medical Establishments, which the National Assembly adopted at first and then at the second reading.

A team of physicians from the non-profit organization Renaissance and Progress visited the island of Donoussa in early May to provide free medical services to its few inhabitants. Donoussa, an attractive summer destination in the eastern Cyclades, presents limited opportunities for its 130 inhabitants when it comes to health and education.

A corruption prosecutor investigating damages to Greece's main national healthcare provider EOPYY through the overpricing of certain medical procedures has asked Parliament to lift the immunity of former alternate health minister Marios Salmas, so that he can be called in for questioning.