The Italian Government Tackles Unnecessary Prescriptions to Reduce Healthcare Waiting Lists
The National Health Service in Italy has been facing a major challenge with long waiting lists for treatments, causing 3 million Italians to give up on seeking healthcare. The Government is taking steps to address this issue by focusing on reducing unnecessary prescriptions that contribute to overwhelming the healthcare system.
In a soon-to-be-decree on waiting lists, the Minister of Health, Orazio Schillaci, highlighted the need to tackle what experts refer to as “prescriptive appropriateness.” This involves curbing the excessive prescriptions from family doctors and specialists for services that are often deemed unnecessary, amounting to a waste of up to 10 billion euros annually.
Defensive medicine, driven by the fear of lawsuits, plays a significant role in the trend of overprescribing. To address this, the Government has introduced measures to protect doctors from legal action until 2024. Minister Schillaci estimates that inappropriate prescriptions make up at least 20% of the total number of prescriptions issued.
Apart from addressing the demand side, the decree also focuses on the supply side of healthcare. Hospitals may soon have the option to “purchase” freelance services from their doctors to streamline services and reduce waiting lists. Additionally, there are plans to gradually exceed the spending ceiling on personnel, allowing for increased hiring in the healthcare sector.
The mechanism for prescriptive appropriateness will require doctors to specify the diagnostic question related to the prescribed service, enabling better tracking of diagnostic areas and identifying abnormal prescribing patterns. The Higher Institute of Health will provide guidelines for doctors, ensuring they adhere to good practices certified by scientific societies.
The Government aims to improve healthcare management by providing resources for local health authorities to pay overtime for doctors and nurses. Agenas, the regional health services agency, will monitor waiting times for each hospital, facilitating better oversight and management of resources.
Overall, the Government’s efforts to tackle unnecessary prescriptions and improve healthcare services aim to reduce waiting lists and provide better access to healthcare for all Italians.