Meeting of Medical Students with the Health Minister

Ljubljana – Meeting of Medical Students of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ljubljana with the Health Minister, October 10th, 2019

The event that took place on October 10th, 2019 was organized by the Student Council of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ljubljana.

Notable guests included: Health Minister Mr Aleš Šabeder, State Secretary of the Ministry of Health Simona Bornšek Repar MD, the President of the Medical Chamber of Slovenia Zdenka Čebašek-Travnik MD and the Dean of the UL MF Prof Igor Švab MD PhD.

Guests and attendees were greeted by the president of the Student Council of the UL MF Klemen Petek , who pointed out the students’ wish for further cooperation with the Ministry of Health and other stakeholders in the Slovenian healthcare field. In the introductory part, the President of the Medical Chamber of Slovenia and the Dean of the UL MF outlined changes of the Slovenian healthcare system they deemed necessary.

The Health Minister then took the stage to talk about the legislative changes the ministry has and will continue to implement in the Slovenian healthcare system. The introductory speeches were followed by a discussion, moderated by Student Council President Klemen Petek and Vice President Anka Uršič. Students had the chance to voice their opinions, point out their concerns and present possible solutions to the minister and other important stakeholders.

This was the minister's third meeting with medical students in about half a year.

During the discussion, the Dean of the UL MF pointed out that increasing the number of enrolled students at the UL MF would mean lowering academic standards. He stressed that such changes were impossible until substantial infrastructural investments are made and systemic changes are implemented.

Senior year medical student of the UL MF Kevin Pelicon presented key findings of a large survey of medical students concerning family medicine and the healthcare system in Slovenia. The survey was prepared in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and the Student Council. More than ¼ of all medical students in Slovenia participated in the study. This includes students from both medical schools in the country (at the University of Ljubljana and at the University of Maribor). The full text of the report (in Slovenian) is attachment below.

Some of the key findings of the survey:

• for students the most pertinent issues are: the uncertainty in terms of matching their desired specialty, unpredictable health legislation and the lengthy process between earning their degree and starting residency,
• almost 40 % of students do not believe they will have gained enough knowledge and skills to practice medicine upon completion of their undergraduate course,
• if asked today, more than one in five students would not enroll in medical school again,
• almost half of Slovenia’s medical students are considering or determined to pursue a career abroad,
• the most common reasons for considering moving abroad are: better working conditions, the ability to match a desired specialty, better career opportunities and opportunities for further education,
• only 1,7 % of students would definitely choose to specialize in family medicine, while more than 60 % of students would not,
• according to students the most pertinent issues in family medicine are: too many patients per family physician (general practitioner) and a general lack thereof, poor working conditions, unclear legislation, shifting responsibility to primary care and poor reputation of the specialty among other doctors,
• students who wouldn’t opt to specialize in family medicine would consider doing so, if: the administrative burden of family physicians was reduced, the number of patients per physician were reduced, salaries were increased and family physicians’ needs were taken into account when drafting legislation,
• almost two thirds of students believe that working conditions in family medicine are worse than those in other specialties,
• about a quarter of students would probably choose to specialize in family medicine if a scholarship were introduced.

Other notable guests included:

• Vice Dean of the UL MF Prof Tomaž Marš MD PhD
• Vice Dean of the UL MF Prof Ksenija Geršak MD PhD
• Vice Dean of the UL MF prof. dr. Janja Jan DMD PhD
• Director of the Community Health Centre Ljubljana Mr Rudi Dolšak
• Director General of the University Medical Center Ljubljana Mr Janez Poklukar MD
• Medical Director of the Dental Clinic of the University Medical Center Ljubljana Prof Martina Drevenšek DMD PhD
• President of the Slovenian Medical Association Prof Radko Komadina MD PhD

 

The Student Council is convinced and hopes that the successful cooperation with the Ministry of Health, the Medical Chamber of Slovenia and other medical organizations will continue in the future. We believe our input is crucial to the Ministry and other stakeholders when drafting new legislation and will continue to be of vital importance.

 

Poročilo o anketi študentov medicine o slovenskem zdravstvenem sistemu in družinski medicini (Slovenian)

Authors of the Report: Kevin Pelicon, Tina Pavlin, Evita Pšeničny, Klemen Petek

 

Further information
Anja Stopar, anja.stopar(at)mf.uni-lj.si (PR)

mf.uni-lj.si/ssulmf
studentski.svet(at)mf.uni-lj.si
fb.me/ssulmf

Related news
Novica Ministrstva za zdravje

Photos
Photos are available here. To be used only with permission of the Student Council.