Health personnel and health care in the Haskovo region
Bulgarian Medical Journal, 2024, 18(3), 40-45.
D. Shopov1, V. Mihaylova2,3, A. Alakidi4
1 Department of Health Management and Health Economics, Faculty of Public Health, Medical University – Plovdiv
2 Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Public Health, Medical University – Sofia
3 Department of Healthcare Management, Faculty of Public Health, Medical University ‒ Plovdiv
4 Department of Epidemiology and Hygiene, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University ‒ Sofia
Abstract. Introduction: On the territory of the country, health care (inpatient and outpatient) is provided by medical facilities, mainly commercial companies owned by the state, municipalities and/or private individuals. Purpose: The aim of the present study is to analyze the processes in health care, focusing on the emergence, dynamics in the number, activity of hospital care facilities in their various forms of ownership in the Haskovo region for the period from 2017 to 2022, including. Material and Methods: The article presents the results of the analysis of the data related to health care in the Haskovo region, as well as some of the main indicators characterizing the activity of the medical institutions – patients admitted, bed days spent, bed availability and average length of stay of a treated patient, and for this purpose the following methods were used: method of theoretical synthesis, documentary method, and comparative method. Results: Demographic processes play a significant role in the disproportionate reduction of the population in municipalities and in the district. It also reduces the number of patients who seek and receive health services. There is an insufficient load on the medical equipment and a duplication of activities carried out in the regional hospitals, of a lower quality and in a smaller volume. The shortage of doctors and health care specialists is particularly noticeable, which further exacerbates the problems with the medical care provided by the local municipal hospitals. Conclusion: A major problem of health care is the contradiction between limited financial resources and the real increasing costs of health as a result of demographic changes, growing needs and continuous introduction of new, increasingly expensive methods of diagnosis and treatment.
Key words: demographic processes, health care, community hospitals, doctors, health care professionals.
Address for correspondence: Assoc. Prof. Dimitar Shopov, MD, PhD, е-mail: shopov_d@abv.bg