“When it seems as if the Minister of Education and Science can’t say anything worse, he again climbs the Kilimanjaro of ignorance and defends universities that should never have the right to educate future doctors. We are on the verge of disaster in the health sector staffing, numerous medical courses are being massively opened in universities offering their students ‘electronic operating rooms’, and the Minister of Education and Science refers to these assistant courses, insulting doctors and medical university rectors. This is an unprecedented scandal,” comments Michał Bulsa, president of the Regional Medical Board in Szczecin.
The Supreme Medical Chamber has notified the District Prosecutor’s Office in Ostrow Wielkopolski of the suspicion of a crime committed by the Kalisz University named after President Stanisław Wojciechowski in Kalisz. The university opened a medical course without having the necessary infrastructure and technical resources, despite negative opinions from the Polish Accreditation Committee.
During the inauguration of the academic year, the Minister of Education and Science, Przemysław Czarnek, told the Polish Press Agency that the “supreme Medical Chamber’s impudence knows no limits.” These words, along with the minister’s and rector’s strong determination to defend medical courses that are just starting to operate in unprepared universities, shocks the doctors of the Regional Medical Board in Szczecin.
“Minister of Education and Science Przemysław Czarnek is correct in one respect. There is a shortage of tens of thousands of doctors in public health care in Poland. Does that mean that we will soon open medical programs in every vocational school, just to make the ‘statistics add up’? Maybe we should first think about improving working conditions in the public sector,” says Michał Bulsa, president of the Regional Medical Board in Szczecin.
“Do we want those who graduate from medical schools who have not studied in professional medical classrooms to treat us? In operating rooms? Using electronic tools, not real specimens? Minister of Education and Science Przemysław Czarnek and the Law and Justice Government are the architects of the collapse of the prestige of medical education in Poland,” says Michał Bulsa.
As President Bulsa adds, the Supreme Medical Board and Regional Medical Chambers have been saying for years what needs to be done to have more doctors in Poland. The aim should not be to increase the number of universities educating doctors, but to focus on quality. It’s also important that universities, who have traditions, support and staff educating future doctors, fully utilise their potential. The government should focus on making the work in the public health sector attractive, not systematically repel people from it.
“We appeal to Przemysław Czarnek for reflection. We do not expect apologies or kind words. It is not a shame not to know, but it is a shame not to want to complete your knowledge,” adds Michał Bulsa.
