Outpatient treatment is a way of providing medical care to the population, which does not imply the placement of the patient in an inpatient medical institution. All medical and diagnostic measures are carried out at home or when the patient appears for an appointment with a doctor of a medical institution.
Thus, medical care is organized for patients whose condition does not require round-the-clock bed rest and continuous, systematic monitoring of medical specialists. A patient on an outpatient basis comes to the attending physician at the appointed time to monitor the condition and assess its dynamics.
Medical institutions providing medical care in this mode are an outpatient clinic and a polyclinic.
What is an outpatient clinic
An outpatient clinic is a medical institution whose tasks are to provide medical care to the population attached to it on a territorial basis, in accordance with the main medical areas, on an outpatient basis.
In the outpatient clinic, it is mandatory to conductmedical history for each person seeking medical care. This is how patients are kept.
The provision of medical care on the basis of a medical outpatient clinic is covered by the scope of he alth insurance.
An outpatient clinic may exist as an independent medical institution, which is a separate legal entity, or may be part of a hospital and be one of its structural divisions.
Evaluation of the effective operation of the outpatient clinic is carried out by analyzing the incidence among the attached population, statistics on temporary disability, the incidence of infectious diseases, and other demographic indicators. The quality of medical examination is also taken into account.
The construction of an outpatient clinic, including in rural areas, is usually carried out in conjunction with a pharmacy and housing stock intended for medical workers and pharmacy staff.
Mobile Outpatient Unit
Mobile dispensary is a subdivision functioning on the basis of central district hospitals. The tasks of such a mobile outpatient service include:
- organization and implementation of periodic medical examinations and medical examinations;
- organize and conduct consultations with representatives of the attached contingent;
- providing medical care to the population attached to the hospital, including, in narrow medical speci alties, by doctors who are part of the staff of the central districthospitals.
How is an outpatient clinic different from a polyclinic
A polyclinic is a kind of medical and preventive institution of a multidisciplinary or specialized type, designed to provide medical care and conduct diagnostic measures at the reception or at home.
Unlike a polyclinic, an outpatient clinic does not have sufficient capacity and staff to provide treatment and preventive work in a wide range of areas of medicine; medical care here is provided only for the main medical profiles:
- therapy;
- surgery;
- obstetrics and gynecology (in large outpatient clinics in rural areas);
- dentistry;
- pediatrics.
How the institution is staffed
Management of the activities of an independent outpatient clinic is carried out by the chief physician, whose functions are to develop the staffing table.
The structure of the institution includes the following units, staffed by relevant specialists:
- Registration.
- Offices of medical specialists.
- Structures involved in diagnostics (X-ray room, laboratory, department of functional diagnostics).
- Treatment departments (physiotherapy, treatment room).
- Another department that can be deployed on the basis of an outpatient clinic is a day hospital, designed for a small number of beds. In this case, the staff also includes a doctor, as well as a nurse orday hospital paramedic.
The organization of an outpatient clinic implies the presence of a pharmacy. This is usually taken into account when constructing buildings intended to open a dispensary.
