Reform of personal doctor system discussed in Cyprus — Cyprus Mail

Cyprus’s parliament discussed changes to the work of personal doctors in the national Gesy healthcare system: lawmakers were interested in the principles of their remuneration, new quality criteria and the maximum number of patients one doctor can register. Cyprus Mail reports that the parliamentary health committee examined weaknesses and imbalances in the system’s operation.

A new approach to remuneration

Petros Neophytou, a representative of the Health Insurance Organisation, said that the model for remunerating personal doctors is planned to change in 2027. Instead of the current 80/20 scheme, a 70/30 model is to be applied, increasing the share of payment that depends on a doctor’s performance.

According to him, the organisation is also introducing quality criteria and reviewing assessment indicators. Neophytou acknowledged that when Gesy was launched, doctors with different levels of training joined the personal doctor system, including doctors without a specialisation. At the same time, he noted that most personal doctors work quite well and that patients can change their doctor.

Number of patients and doctors’ training

Andreas Ioannou, a representative of the Pancyprian Medical Association, said that 640 personal doctors work in Gesy. They include 150 specialist doctors, 150 general practitioners and 80 doctors from other specialties.

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Ioannou drew attention to inequality in the training of personal doctors: not all of them have the same amount of knowledge, although they perform the same work. He also said that about 170 doctors have around 2,500 registered patients each.

After the meeting, the acting chair of the committee, Disy MP Charalambos Pazaros, said he intended to submit a bill on the maximum number of patients a personal doctor would be able to register. The Osak patient association stressed that the personal doctor is a key link in Gesy, should develop genuine relationships with patients and advise them on disease prevention.

The discussion took place after a World Health Organization study on Gesy commissioned by the Health Insurance Organisation. A representative of the Ministry of Health said the report found no abuse of the system, but made recommendations for its improvement. The Ministry of Finance supported the WHO recommendation for a mixed remuneration model for personal doctors and its further expansion.