In brief

• The Patient Ombudsman presented recommendations for primary care clinics (POZ) regarding the order of appointments.
• The appointment date is to depend on the urgency of the request, assessed in a triage procedure.
• The final qualification is to be carried out by medical staff, not by registration.

Urgency instead of order of requests

The Patient Ombudsman published new recommendations on 23 October concerning the organization of appointments in POZ clinics. They provide for the use of triage, that is, an assessment of how urgent each request is (Koniec z zasadą „kto pierwszy, ten lepszy” u lekarza? Nowe rekomendacje dla przychodni POZ – GazetaPrawna.pl).

The first caller does not always need help most urgently

The patient who was the first to get through to registration does not necessarily be the one who needs help most urgently. The situation is different for a person requesting a planned check-up for a chronic disease, and different for someone describing sudden symptoms.

Three types of appointments

The recommendations distinguish three options: a visit on the same day, admission within 1–3 days, and a planned visit (Zmiany w przychodniach POZ? O tym ma decydować termin wizyty – abczdrowie.pl). The final qualification should be carried out by medical staff, not by a registration employee.

Limits of registration staff competence

A registration employee may collect information about the request and pass it on, but does not assess the patient's health condition. The first request alone therefore does not determine the order of admission.

What this changes for patients

If clinics implement the recommendations, the appointment date will depend on the state of health, not on the moment of the request. People requesting a chronic disease check-up may expect a visit at an agreed time, not immediate admission.