Gynecologists provide a basic service for women of all ages, just like GPs or pediatricians, yet the waiting times in gynecology are long and extend to an average of 18-17 days, almost three weeks of waiting.
It is possible that the wait is even longer because the data in the possession of the Ministry of Health are correct for December 2019, and have not been updated for two years.
When examining the division by locality (where at least seven doctors work), it appears that the waiting time is longer in the big cities - in Tel Aviv, women wait an average of 22.8 days, and 5% of them will have to wait even 85 days.
In Jerusalem, the average waiting time is 20.3 days, in Be'er Sheva the waiting time is 21.9 days on average, and in about five percent of cases the waiting time lasts up to 62 days.
In Ofakim, women wait 21 days before the queue is realized, and in the Galilee landscape and in Shefar'am, the average is 10.8 days.
"A good few years have passed since my birth. I have to have a Pap test and also check that everything is fine because I did not do it a long time ago," one of the complainants told Keren Beria. Only in two and a half months.The forces I found to start the process of caring for myself in a busy life of work and children evaporated, and I decided to postpone the appointment because even so it will happen a lot more time, so it does not really matter. turn".
"Finding creative ways"
Meital Bensak, VP of the Healthy Foundation, explains: "Many women have talked to us and expressed frustration about the length of queues for gynecologists, especially in the southern periphery. Despite the illusion of availability of appointments at the checkout sites, most women seek out a regular doctor, and once they have found one they will, in most cases, have to wait between a month and a half to four months for an appointment. This reality harms women's health because some despair and give up making appointments. Thus there is no regular follow-up and miss of important tests like Pap. Creative ways must be found to alleviate the burden placed on physicians, thus reducing waiting time. It is impossible to remain indifferent to the situation, "she explained.
The Ministry of Health responded: "Waiting times for occupational medicine are examined as part of the ministry's controls in the HMO districts. The ministry is carrying out staff work, which will enable future monitoring of waiting times for professional medicine in the community. To measure waiting times to reflect them to the public and to help make decisions. "
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