Since the project involves regions where family medicine is already widely implemented and those where it is only emerging, the number of doctors selected for training and the number of outpatient clinics were determined accordingly. Thus, in the city of Khmelnytskyi, where family doctors already exist and where the urban variant of the model is being developed, 5 family medicine outpatient clinics are involved; in Mykhailivskyi district, Zaporizhzhia oblast, fully covered by family medicine, 13 family outpatient clinics are involved, and 12 rural outpatient clinics will be reorganized into family-type outpatient clinics in Sakskyi district, Autonomous Republic of Crimea, where family medicine is only beginning to be implemented.
The purpose of the training course is to deepen the knowledge and skills of already trained family doctors regarding understanding of the tasks facing primary health care and family medicine, to align their understanding with the role they should play in the health care system, to help them understand the differences between narrowly specialized and primary health care. The difference lies in the application of a holistic approach to treatment, the use of counseling methods, the expansion of services and, most importantly, the promotion of a healthy lifestyle and disease prevention. The acquired knowledge will encourage doctors to create appropriate motivations and self-education. It is worth noting that the cost of a similar one-week training course in Great Britain costs a family doctor 500 pounds sterling (700 US dollars).
The selection of training topics was based on data obtained from a survey conducted among medical workers in the pilot regions at the end of last year. The questionnaires indicate that family doctors lack additional practical skills in many topics of narrow specialization in health care and they have little interest in knowledge and skills regarding the promotion of a healthy lifestyle and disease prevention, which is most important for a primary health care doctor. During the training, it is also envisaged to become acquainted with the opinion of family doctors regarding the definition of PHC services in the pilot regions.
The practical training will be conducted by instructors — representatives of the EU project who have personal experience in family doctor practice and continue to work on this topic. These are: Richard Styles. Dr. Styles worked as a family doctor and headed a primary health care outpatient clinic in Great Britain, and lectured in a university program. He is a senior examiner at the Royal College of General Practitioners (primary health care) in London, and is also responsible for developing this institution's relations with Ukraine. In addition, he serves as an adviser on international issues regarding primary health care in Kuwait. Previously, Dr. Styles worked in the West Indies and the USA. Since December 2003, Dr. Richard Styles has been leading this EU project in Ukraine. Arnoldas Jurgutis. Dr. Jurgutis serves as head of the Department of Public Health at Klaipeda University (Lithuania), associate professor, candidate of medical sciences. He worked as a family medicine instructor and family doctor, and was chief physician of the Klaipeda district municipality. He retrained into family medicine from a district therapist at a rural outpatient clinic. He completed training as a family medicine instructor (trainer) under the European Union PHARE program, and interned in Great Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Poland, and Spain. Co-author of a textbook on family medicine. Consultant for this EU project. Vladyslav Odrynskyi. By profession, a therapist. Worked in a private clinic. Since 1997, he has been involved in family medicine issues at the Zaporizhzhia State Institute for Advanced Training of Doctors and during the implementation of the JHPIEGO project (Johns Hopkins University) on improving reproductive health of the population. He was the head of a project funded by USAID (United States Agency for International Development) on training family doctors and nurses from rural areas in counseling skills on family planning and reproductive health. Currently, he is an assistant to the rector of the Zaporizhzhia Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, working on a candidate's dissertation on the organization of the PHC system on the principles of family medicine. Consultant for this EU project.
Attention journalists! On the Internet portal www.svitua.com, a section "Family Medicine" has been created, whose materials are sent to over 500 addressees, including central and local government structures, international and Ukrainian public organizations, as well as media, most of which are regional. Journalists may freely use all facts from the section's materials or reprint the materials in full, as well as send their own information, feedback or suggestions.
The project "Preventive and Primary Health Care Measures for Ukraine, Kyiv and a Number of Oblasts" began its work in October 2002, and its implementation is designed for 36 months. The project is funded by the European Union. The implementer of the project is the German consortium CII GROUP/EPOS. The purpose of the project is to improve the quality, efficiency and accessibility of primary health care for the population of Ukraine. The expected result is the development of a primary health care model for its subsequent implementation at the national level. The CII GROUP/EPOS consortium, which is implementing the EU family medicine project in Ukraine, is an independent international consulting company specializing in providing services to international donor organizations, national and local government structures and the private sector in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and also implements projects funded by the European Commission and the World Bank, etc. The company has been successfully operating in the Ukrainian market for the past 8 years: it provides consultations to the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, has successfully implemented an EU project in the pharmaceutical industry, and is currently implementing a project in the field of primary medicine.
Contact information: Liubov Batih, tel/fax: 235-6042, 246-5986, e-mail: LB@cii.kiev.uа