Medical rehabilitation: model ready but not used? [Experts panel at NIK]

The modern model of medical rehabilitation, developed in Poland, approved by WHO and adopted globally, is based on four pillars. Rehabilitation should be used widely, on a continuous and comprehensive basis. But first of all, it should be started as early as possible. Effectiveness of that model as well as its advantages for the society have been already observed in many countries.

NIK is preparing a complex audit of availability and financing of medical rehabilitation in Poland. It was preceded by an experts panel organised by NIK. The meeting was attended by national rehabilitation and physiotherapy consultants as well as presidents of societies which gather competent specialists. ”Since some point in time we have stopped to believe at NIK that we know everything. We are willing to use the help of practitioners and experts because we want to get to the essence of the issues we audit” - explains Vice-President of NIK, Wojciech Misiąg.

Statement of Piotr Wasilewski from the Department of Health at NIK

Medical rehabilitation

The audit is expected to answer the question if the state guarantees reasonable access to medical rehabilitation for Polish people. A person with a spine injury who has to wait a few months for the committee’s decision to send him or her to rehabilitation, would probably answer ”no”. There are many more of such stories in the Polish reality which have been confirmed by experts invited to NIK.

”Medical rehabilitation seems to be underappreciated in our country. Unfortunately, partly also in the medical environment” - claims Piotr Wasilewski from the Department of Health. And he provides examples: rehabilitation physicians have limited access to patients’ diagnostics and rehabilitation departments have problems with using selected treatment methods. It may be related to the belief that rehabilitation can wait. However, effectiveness of that method is determined by when it is started.

What is also alarming is disproportion in accessibility of medical rehabilitation in individual regions of Poland. There are some signals that the time of waiting for procedures varies considerably depending on the area of our country. ”We don’t want to settle for the answer that there is too little money in the system. The less money there is, the more wisdom and fairness you need to manage that” - argued Wojciech Misiąg.

NIK sets ambitious goals for itself. The audit is to identify factors limiting accessibility of medical rehabilitation. NIK inspectors also want to specify strengths and weaknesses of the existing system. Educational aspect of the final report is said to be equally important. It may contribute to a change in thinking about rehabilitation among patients and a part of medical environment.

”At the end of the day we want to find an answer to a simple question: What should be done to make things better?” - Vice-President Misiąg clarifies the audit objectives. ”We want to help in finding new solutions to provide better access to rehabilitation in Poland.”