Today we marked Croatian National Doctor’s Day!

On February 26th, we marked Croatian National Doctor’s Day. We commemorate it on the day the Croatian Medical Association was founded, February 26, 1874. Back then, it was only the 8th medical association in Europe. In addition to the fact that this day serves to mark an important moment in the history of the medical profession in Croatia, Doctor’s Day is a good cause and incentive to strengthen awareness of the value and importance of the medical profession.

Worrying data

It is necessary to point out the worrying trend of decreasing medical and other health care personnel in our country, especially in less developed, insular and rural areas, which significantly hinders the availability and provision of health care at all levels. This day should be used to show gratitude for the dedicated work of our doctors despite all the problems in the health infrastructure. Health institutions and workers are geographically unequally distributed and the largest number is located in central Croatia with an emphasis on the City of Zagreb. President of the Croatian Medical Chamber, PhD. Krešimir Luetić pointed out that some of the problems medical professionals face include the inappropriate positioning of doctors in society, an overtime hourly rate that has been misrepresented for years and many more. Let’s not forget about the COVID-19 pandemic and the overload that healthcare professionals have faced, especially over the last year. With the development of vaccines, last year’s challenges are sure to be followed by a year of hope.

Cooperation between doctors and pharmacists

As future pharmacists, we are aware of how important cooperation with doctors is for the patient and the health system in general. For this purpose, we present an overview of scientific work in the scientific and professional journal in the field of biomedicine and health care Medicus. In 2018, a study was conducted with the aim of describing and determining the number of this type of pharmacy interventions through cooperation with a family medicine doctor. A total of 92 patients with an average age of 67.5 years participated in the study. Almost all subjects took prescription drugs, while 28 additionally used over-the-counter (OTC) medicines and 24 subjects used dietary supplements.

Over the course of a month, the doctor, in cooperation with the pharmacist, introduced a  change in therapy in 46 cases (drug change, change in dosing regimen and more intensive monitoring of patients), while the pharmacist intervened in another 48 cases directly with the patient (advice regarding self-medication, proper use of prescribed medications and highlighting the importance of regular medication). Regardless of whether the intervention was directed at a doctor or patient, the most recommended was the discontinuation of the drug with the introduction of a new drug into therapy or only the discontinuation of the drug. Drug interactions were found in 69 subjects, of which 46 needed intervention due to clinically important interactions. This research warned about the importance of cooperation between doctors and pharmacists that resulted in the recognition of therapeutic problems, their elimination and optimization of pharmacotherapy.

To all doctors who love and responsibly do their job that requires a lot of renunciation, effort and daily understanding for patients, we wish them all the best for their day!

Translated by: Luka Nalo