Patients will undergo PET scanner examinations in Podgorica at the private hospital "Kodra" starting next week, at the expense of the Health Insurance Fund.
This was confirmed to "Vijesti" by the Croatian private polyclinic "Medikol", which signed a business cooperation agreement with the Health Insurance Fund (FZO) at the beginning of March this year, which enables the provision of PET/CT diagnostic services in Podgorica, as well as in alternative centers in Croatia. Imaging of patients in Montenegro will begin on Wednesday, May 7.
The director of the "Medikol" polyclinic, Ivanka Trstenjak Rajković, told "Vijesti" yesterday that this private health institution is a formal service provider in relation to the Fund and patients, while the imaging services themselves are performed in "Kodra".
"The operational part of the work related to PET/CT imaging of patients in Podgorica is performed on a PET/CT device located at the 'Codra Hospital' location, in cooperation with 'Codra' as a subcontractor and partner of 'Medikol', while the results of the patient's imaging are processed and read exclusively by the 'Medikol' Polyclinic, which issues the results," the response states.
The Health Insurance Fund previously told "Vijesti" that the director of the institution, Vuk Kadić, signed a Business Cooperation Agreement with Trstenjak Rajković, which enables the provision of PET/CT diagnostics in Podgorica, as well as in alternative centers in Split, Rijeka and Osijek.
"The significance of this contract is that PET/CT diagnostics will be implemented for the first time in Montenegro, and it will enable improved accessibility and increased efficiency in providing the aforementioned service, especially for oncology patients. In this way, we make it easier for patients for whom traveling outside Montenegro represents a great effort given their health condition, and at the same time we ensure significant savings in funds allocated for travel expenses for insured persons and their companions, who have so far been referred to clinics in Novi Sad and Istanbul with which the Fund has concluded contracts," the HIF wrote in its response.
The largest number of insured people from Montenegro are still being sent to Turkey at the expense of the Health Insurance Fund, most often for PET/CT diagnostics, "Vijesti" recently reported.
Oncology patients are most often sent for this type of diagnostics, hundreds of them annually, and Montenegro is still the only country in the region that has not had a PET scanner to date, unlike Serbia, Republika Srpska, Macedonia, and Albania.
The Clinical Center of Montenegro (KCCG), which has been working on the project of installing and commissioning PET/CT for years, responded to "Vijesti" in early March that the main project is in the final revision phase. The institution announced in early 2021 that they could receive a PET scanner, the gold standard for diagnosing patients with tumors, by the end of 2023, but also that the project was planned in two or three phases due to its complexity and the creation of adequate space for accommodation.
"The PET-CT installation and commissioning project is being implemented in cooperation with the Ministry of Health of Montenegro. The procurement of PET-CT was secured through a partial donation of funds from the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency), i.e. 75 percent of the total value is borne by the IAEA, and 25 percent by the Montenegrin Health Insurance Fund (FZO). The procurement procedure is being implemented by the IAEA," KCCG explained to "Vijesti" last month.
They point out that the possibility of reconstructing the old building of the Institute of Oncology for the installation of a PET scanner was initially considered, but was abandoned in order to provide complete prerequisites for the effective, efficient and safe functioning of the scanner.
"Accordingly, all activities have been undertaken to build the Hematology Clinic on the site of the old building of the Institute of Oncology, which in the current status of the project results in the development of the main project, which is in the final stage of revision. The established deadline for announcing the public procurement procedure for the execution of the works is April of this year," said the KCCG.
They said that the institution, taking into account the period planned for the execution of the works and the necessity of uninterrupted provision of healthcare services, has begun adapting the premises of the old Medical School building in order to continue uninterrupted implementation of diagnostic procedures until the opening of the new Hematology Clinic.
"From the aspect of the training of medical staff, they are qualified to carry out diagnostic procedures with the need to carry out specific preparation for operating a specific future scanner, which certainly belongs to the usual training regime for working with specific medical equipment," the KCCG emphasized.
They also said that "the context of the above is the vision of establishing cooperation with a clinic from Croatia, all with the aim of timely and uninterrupted provision of medical services for the citizens of Montenegro."
"The financial effects of such an arrangement are identical to the effects that arose from sending patients to clinics in Turkey or Serbia, with the important fact that the newly established cooperation with the local clinic avoids the patient and family from traveling abroad, thus making the treatment process easier for the patient," the KCCG responded.
Bonus video:
