On-call doctor system ‘doing well’

Having on-call doctors has been working satisfactorily for over six months since the measure was announced, the head of the Health Insurance Organisation (HIO) Efi Kamitsi said on Tuesday.

“The institution of on-call doctors is doing well,” said Kamitsi, commenting on the service which was launched last July.

“The [health] centres are stable, so people have known where to go. We always see increases in the winter when because of viral infections, there are increased volumes.”

Asked to comment on complaints that phones are not answered during on-call hours, she said, “We have not received any such complaints, we have not had any particular issue.”

She added that improvements are constantly being made.

“In September we took stock and made some improvements. At the close of the winter season, we will talk to the doctors and people and see if any other adjustments need to be made,” she added.

The opening hours of on-call services on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays are from 11.00am to 5.00pm.

In addition, the call centre starts its operation 30 minutes before the opening of the centres.

The doctors that will be on call in each district and the clinics that will be open on weekends and public holidays are announced on Fridays, and can be found on the Gesy website https://www.gesy.org.cy/