The National Health Fund published detailed results of two inspections carried out at the Zespół Opieki Zdrowotnej in Bolesławiec. Both concerned the provision and settlement of services financed from public funds, and both ended with a negative assessment.

The first inspection concerned the Internal Medicine Department, while the second involved the Hospital Emergency Department.

More than PLN 61,000 at the Internal Medicine Department

The inspection of the Internal Medicine Department was carried out from May 22 to July 12, 2024. The NFZ examined, among other things, the provision and reporting of services related to sleep-related breathing disorders.

The inspection covered services provided from November 2019 to March 2020 and from May 2022 through the end of 2023. The Fund also examined the provision of round-the-clock medical and nursing care from November 2022 to February 2023.

The inspection ended with a negative assessment. The NFZ identified the following irregularity:

Incorrect qualification of services financed through a lump-sum payment under the PSZ.

The financial impact of this inspection was set at PLN 61,728.69.

The NFZ obliged the hospital to correctly qualify patients’ hospitalizations into the appropriate groups of the JGP system. The Fund pointed out, among other things, the need to indicate the correct diagnosis resulting from the patient’s condition, the treatment applied and the procedures actually performed.

The hospital was also required to correct reports concerning services which, according to the inspectors’ findings, had been unjustifiably reported to the Lower Silesian Voivodeship Branch of the NFZ.

More than PLN 54,000 at the Hospital Emergency Department

The second inspection was carried out from January 17 to February 29, 2024. It concerned services provided at the Hospital Emergency Department and settled for the period from April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2023.

Here too, the assessment was negative. The NFZ found:

Incorrect qualification of financed services.

The financial impact amounted to PLN 54,142.64.

The Fund ordered the hospital to correct statistical reports and settlement documents. The post-inspection recommendations also stated that the hospital should provide information consistent with the actual facts and supported by medical documentation.

The NFZ also obliged the facility to document the services provided correctly, reliably and in accordance with the actual circumstances.

Nearly PLN 116,000 in total

The total financial impact of both inspections amounted to exactly PLN 115,871.33:

  • Internal Medicine Department – PLN 61,728.69,
  • Hospital Emergency Department – PLN 54,142.64.

The published statement does not indicate, however, whether the entire amount was returned by the hospital, deducted by the NFZ or settled in another way. It also does not state how many services or patients were affected by the irregularities.

It is also unknown whether the errors resulted from incorrect service coding, defective documentation, an improper interpretation of settlement rules or other causes.

On July 10, we asked the director of the Bolesławiec hospital, Kamil Barczyk, about the matter. He did not respond.

On Friday, July 17, we instead received information from the National Health Fund about an ongoing inspection.

“An inspection procedure is being conducted at the hospital in Bolesławiec concerning the provision, reporting and settlement of selected services provided from January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024,” says Anna Szewczuk-Łebska, press spokesperson for the Lower Silesian Voivodeship Branch of the NFZ.