How to choose a POZ family doctor and book your first appointment

POZ – primary health care: this is usually where people go for everyday health issues. To receive care paid for by NFZ, you must be entitled to those services. PESEL serves as an identifier and is not insurance in itself. First check your insurance or special grounds, especially after changing jobs.

Choose an institution with an NFZ contract, not just the nearest private office. You can search for clinics via NFZ and the patient portal. Ask the receptionist about opening hours, available languages and whether the doctor is accepting new patients. This helps to avoid applying for a doctor who has no more places.

At the reception, ask for a declaration of choice of a doctor. It can be submitted on paper or through Internetowe Konto Pacjenta. The doctor, nurse and midwife are selected separately; they are not required to work in the same institution. For the first visit, take an identity document and the data on which the right to treatment is verified.

In IKP find the section of primary care selection, select the institution and specialist, send the declaration. Then check its status: sending is not equal to accepting. If rejected, read the reason or call the reception. Don't send several competing requests just because you don't get an immediate response.

• Write down briefly the main problem, its beginning and changes.
• Make a list of drugs with active substances and dosages.
• Take important discharges and results, especially for chronic conditions.
• Indicate allergies and important reactions to medications, if known.
• If it is difficult to explain in Polish, prepare simple phrases and names of drugs in advance.

Registration is possible in person, by telephone, through a third party and electronically; the institution must provide the required forms. When you call, clarify that you are registering within the framework of NFZ to your POZ, and not for a paid specialist appointment. Note the date, address and form of consultation.

You can change your doctor, nurse and midwife twice per calendar year free of charge without giving any reason. For subsequent changes, usually charge 80 zł, but there are exceptions, in particular the relocation or discontinuation of the chosen doctor. The new declaration is filed with the new organization; no special notification of the old one is required.

Please explain what is not confirmed: the right to services or the declaration made. These are different issues. Prepare a proof of insurance base and contact your contributor or NFZ. Do not sign a declaration of right if you are not sure of it.

Public POZ does not mean that any service of any office is free. Before the procedure, ask if it is carried out within the scope of coverage. For a sudden deterioration at night, you need a different route; if life is in danger, do not wait for the declaration or the opening of the reception.

• Selection, registration and cost of the shift
• The basis of insurance
• IKP and electronic services

• PESEL: why you need a Polish identification number
• Trusted profile: what a Profil zaufany means
• First steps after moving to Poland: documents, address, work and medicine
• Ill in the evening: POZ, out-of-hours care, SOR or 112
• Electronic prescriptions in Poland: get the code and collect your medicine