She helps when you need it
Ildikó Radványi MD is the one with whom almost every foreign student will meet during their studies in Pécs - the vulnerable ones for sure. She is the first person to whom all foreign students can turn with their medical problems. Ildikó Radványi had worked as a physician for ten years before she became the General Practitioner (GP) of the Centre for Occupational Health and Hygiene of the University of Pécs Clinical Centre. She has been in service for 6 years in Nyár Street. We asked her about the basics of the Hungarian health care.
What kind of problems can be cured at the Centre, and what sorts of documents are required?
Foreign students can turn to us with any kind of disease or health problem. The first step of their treatment is at our Centre, and if it is necessary, we can forward them for further examinations to other Clinics.
It is crucial to bring to us their passports or identity cards, and if they have any kind of insurance they need to provide the appropriate document from the insurance company. All foreign students will be treated – those who are insured by Generali have treatments free of charge, those who haven’t got this kind of insurance, have to pay.
Where can I get information about the costs if I’m not insured?
The cost of the medical treatments are settled at the rate set by the University of Pécs, it’s part of the Code of Charges and Benefits of the UP. We have a list of the prices at the waiting hall of our Centre, so foreign students usually know about the costs of the treatments.
What languages do you speak?
I speak Hungarian and English, so I speak in English with my patients. There is a colleague who speaks German, so if it is necessary, we can communicate in German as well. Some students come with an interpreter, but it also occurs that they are accompanied by a Hungarian friend who helps to translate if it is necessary.
Are students aware of this medical service? What health problems occur generally?
All information is available on the website of the UP and Registrar’s Offices can provide detailed instructions. Their problems differ, we have coped with somatic, physical and even psychic problems. There are students who have chronic diseases, we try to provide them the special care.
As for sick notes, foreign students get can get the same kind of medical certificate for the time of their illness as the Hungarians.
How can you be prepared to provide medical attendance for students from so many different countries?
Cultural differences have to be kept in mind when we communicate with our patients. For example handshaking is not accepted in some cultures - it’s good to know that. We have to be attentive to the occurrence of diseases or even infections among foreign students which may be quite rare in Hungary.
For example we had some students from the countries threatened by ebola and some of them might have the contagion. We were prepared for that, and we had all kinds of protecting settings for these kinds of cases. During that year we gave two lectures about ebola to the students who came here from the affected area, and they had to fill out a questionnaire so we could find out whether they were endangered or not.
Is the health care system of Pécs prepared for the foreign students?
Our situation is difficult from this point of view: to whom I can send the patient depends on my personal nexus with the other doctors. The problem is that there hasn’t been any common, practised way for foreign patients. It is much easier to assign a Hungarian student for further examinations, but these ways haven’t worked well in the case of the foreign students yet. It very much depends on the kindness of the other doctors. We try to provide health care service for the foreign students in the Clinical Centre of the UP, but sometimes I have to send them to private medical care. Sometimes a patient has to wait for weeks until the next examination, and as for a foreign student it is hard to wait for such a long time. That is why sometimes they prefer to use private medical care.
How about medicines? Can the Hungarian system adapt to medicines or medicinal products of foreign countries?
Medicines used in Hungary are quite similar to the ones used abroad. If there isn’t a medicine which is similar to the one which had been prescribed by the doctor of the patient, we certainly find one that fits in the efficacy of the original one. Finding the proper medicine is usually no problem.
As for foreign students, medication prescribed can be purchased in pharmacies at full market price. That is why it can happen that the medicine would be quite expensive for them in Hungary. In these cases they usually purchase these medical products (for example insulin) in their home country. It is not unusual, that the foreign students keep in touch with their own General Practitioners, and all the results of their tests made in Hungary are forwarded to them - we cooperate with the doctors abroad.
Is there any typical, common mistake on the part of the students?
It would be appreciated if they kept themselves to the official schedule of the Centre more consciously. Tumbling into the clinic as a member of a group of 5-6 foreign students just 5 minutes before the end of the consulting hours isn’t optimal to any of us.
The place of consultation:
Pécs, Nyár u. 8., GPS 46.0967,18.2068
Opening hours:
Monday: 12:00-16:00
Tuesday: 8:00-11:00
Wednesday: 12:00-16:00
Thursday: 8:00-12:00
Friday: 8:00-12:00
by Éva Harka
Photo: Szabolcs Csortos