From April 1, more early rehabilitation services for children with developmental disorders will be provided. The procedure for the provision of these services has already been updated, consultation fees have been increased, and the prices of new services have been calculated, reports the State Sickness Fund under the Ministry of Health (VLK). It is predicted that an additional two million euros will be needed to finance the updated service package.
New services of a social pediatrician doctor
Early rehabilitation services for developmental disorders in children are provided to children up to 7 years of age. They start with the consultation of the doctor providing these services, which has been called the consultation of a social pediatrician since April of this year. A family doctor or other medical specialist who has diagnosed a child’s developmental disorder can issue a referral for a consultation with a social pediatrician. If necessary, it is possible to provide remote consultations of a social pediatrician. It is this doctor who selects and assigns other early rehabilitation services, if there are indications.
Also, from April 1, new services of a social pediatrician doctor are introduced – extended consultation of a social pediatrician doctor and long-term monitoring of a social pediatrician doctor.
An extended consultation of a social pediatrician is a longer-term consultation (1.5 hours) by this doctor’s specialist, during which special diagnostic and therapeutic methods are applied (e.g. assessment of general motor skills, feeding functions, sleep disorders, etc.). Extended consultation of a social pediatrician will be provided in five regional early rehabilitation centers (Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai, Panevėžys).
The long-term monitoring service of a social pediatrician will be provided to patients under 18 years of age who are diagnosed with mental retardation, specific mixed developmental disorders, multiple developmental disorders, congenital spinal cord herniation, cerebral palsy, or other paralytic syndromes. This service will be available to all doctors and social pediatricians in the country.
Specialist team consultations – higher payment
In order to improve the availability of early rehabilitation services, the procedure for providing consultations by a team of specialists has been changed and more than 70 percent of increased rates for these services. Previously, a child was given no more than two consultations of the team of early rehabilitation specialists for developmental disorders in children per year, and from April of this year, two simple and two extended consultations of the team of these specialists can be given.
The consultation of the team of specialists in the early rehabilitation of children’s development disorders will be provided by a social pediatrician and at least one member of the team of these specialists – a kinesitherapist, an occupational therapist, a clinical speech therapist, a medical psychologist, a social worker and a general practice nurse. This service can be provided by treatment facilities providing outpatient early rehabilitation services.
Extended consultation of the early rehabilitation specialist team will be provided by a social pediatrician and at least two members of this specialist team. This service will be provided in five regional early rehabilitation centers.
Early rehabilitation in a day hospital
From April, in order to reduce the need for inpatient services and increase the availability of day inpatient services, a new early rehabilitation day inpatient service “Child Development C” will be provided in early rehabilitation centers of universities. This service is intended for children who have been diagnosed with a complex developmental disorder and its course is complicated by concomitant mental, visual, hearing and physical disorders, but inpatient treatment is not necessary. The patient is monitored in a day hospital for up to 8 hours a day, at least four early rehabilitation specialist consultations are provided.
The previously provided child development early rehabilitation day inpatient services “child development A” and “child development B” will continue to be provided in all institutions providing outpatient early rehabilitation services.
According to the preliminary calculations of VLK, it may be necessary to finance all rehabilitation services for children’s early development in addition to about 2 million. EUR of Mandatory Health Insurance Fund (PSDF) funds per year.
It is reminded that all early childhood development rehabilitation services are paid from the PSDF, if you apply to a treatment facility that has a contract with the territorial health insurance fund for the provision and payment of these services.
