PATIENTS FROM UKRAINE ARE TREATED AT THE AMETHYST RADIOTHERAPY CENTER IN KRAKOW
These are people at very different stages of cancer and at different stages of treatment. Due to the situation they find themselves in, only some of them have full medical documentation, which allows them to immediately determine the needs and refer the patient to the appropriate clinic. During the visit, we also offer the support of a translator, which enables appropriate mutual communication between the doctor and the patient.
– We realize that the situation is extraordinary because, in addition to the disease, the patient is additionally burdened with emotions related to the war tragedy. Even before the armed conflict began, Amethyst provided commercial services to foreign patients, including patients from Ukraine. Thanks to this, we have appropriate knowledge and experience in their use. Of course, currently, in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Health, we are obliged to provide medical services financed by the National Health Fund. Additionally, we have the help of a translator, we have launched a hotline and we have prepared the required documents in Ukrainian. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the entire team who showed great empathy and found their way in this difficult situation for everyone. – says Przemysław Zachwieja, President of the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in Krakow.
An important role in the entire process is played by the Patient Service Point, whose task is to verify and select patients who come to the center. This is an extremely demanding task, because already at this stage we have to determine whether the patient who comes to Amethyst can be treated here.
Olga Pojan, who has been cooperating with the Center for many years, is coordinating activities related to servicing Ukrainian patients at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center in Krakow in Ukrainian. To improve work, we launched a dedicated hotline in the first days of March +48 12 33 57 400 in Ukrainian. The hotline is open every day from Monday to Friday from: 10.00-14.00. A special e-mail address has also been launched: ua@amethyst-rtcp.pl. Thanks to the work of the entire reception team and the initial selection of patients, we can focus on providing assistance to those who qualify for it. There are cases in which people who come to the Center asking for help cannot undergo treatment here. Then they are redirected to the Hospital cooperating with Amethyst. Rydygier or other centers.
– Every day we receive several calls from Ukrainian patients who want to continue their treatment with us. Due to the very specific and specialized profile of the therapeutic activities conducted at the Radiotherapy Center, these people are not completely random. They usually already have a preliminary action plan and are consulted with our medical coordinator. Sometimes we come across completely new people, so we try to provide them with information about the possibilities of further treatment or we redirect them to other facilities, including the Oncology Department of the hospital cooperating with us. Rydygiera. – says Viktoriia Kovalska from the Patient Service Point of the Amethyst Radiotherapy Clinic in Krakow.
The most common problems we encounter when serving Ukrainian patients are:
- Incomplete or missing medical documentation
- No translations of medical documentation
- The choice of a treatment facility that does not adequately meet the health needs - Amethyst's activities are highly specialized (radiotherapy oncology) and sometimes patients come to us who require completely different treatment methods.
Every patient treated at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center has the same right to receive medical services. However, each case is always considered individually, and doctors working at the Center perform from a dozen to several dozen consultations and procedures every day. There is one queue for everyone, and the date and time of admitting a patient is always decided by doctors.
– There is no other path to access radiotherapy treatment other than the one resulting from the current health condition of the person coming to us. Polish Patient and Ukrainian Patient are classified for treatment under the same conditions and principles. This is decided each time by doctors during a consultation, after detailed review of the medical documentation and medical history of a given patient. – points out Marta Urbańska-Gąsiorowska, a radiotherapist from the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center.
Since the beginning of March, several dozen Ukrainian patients have applied for treatment at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Center. Some of them have already had their first treatments, some are completing their medical documentation or are undergoing consultations with doctors working at the Center.
