The Ministry of Health wanted to change the procedure for providing medical care to older people in Russia

The Russian Ministry of Health wanted to change the procedure for providing medical care to older people in the country. On draft order No. 38n on amendments to the procedure for providing medical care in the “geriatrics” profile, which was published by the Ministry of Health, noticed “Kommersant”.

The document proposes to reduce the load on geriatricians. The department wanted to reduce the staffing standard, according to which, according to the standard, the staff of the geriatric department requires one geriatrician for every 20 beds. Now their number has been proposed to be reduced to 13 beds per specialist.

In addition, the Ministry of Health requires the opening of a geriatric office in all hospitals with a capacity of more than 400 beds, where there will be one geriatrician and one nurse per specialist.

Geriatrics care is provided to elderly (60-74 years old) and senile patients (75 years old and older). The specialist is called upon to preserve or restore self-care abilities in older people, as well as “physical and functional activity, autonomy, that is, independence from outside help in everyday life.”

Previously, the Ministry of Health proposed lowering the age for the first examination of girls by an obstetrician-gynecologist during preventive medical examinations and conducting them not from 14, but from 13 years. The department believes that changing the age of first examination should lead to earlier “detection of adolescent reproductive health diseases.”