CYIL vol. 12 (2021)

Jindřich Psutka CYIL 12 (2021) on previous cooperation between emergency medical services to the extent provided by the Framework Agreement. It should be added that the final form of cooperation should be considered provisional. Tendencies to deepen further have been significant at the professional and political level for a long time. To overcome them, however, it will be necessary to resolve the economic side of this cooperation. Strengthening cooperation is driven by the effort to make the most efficient use of all available resources so as to achieve the highest possible average standard of care. However, it cannot be ignored that the unequal economic level of the two countries is reflected in the often significantly different level of reimbursement for similar or identical health services. In the creation of a comprehensive system of cross-border cooperation, it would clearly not be possible to suffice with the above-mentioned declaration of reciprocity and unpaid assistance. Such an approach is sufficient in the case where only exceptional, random cooperation is envisaged – i.e not with a functional permanent interconnection of the system of providing urgent pre-hospital care. In addition to the legal framework of the issue, it should also be pointed out that one of the key obstacles remains the language barrier. This prevents the free interchangeability of departure groups from both countries – in other words, a person calling the emergency line suffers in most cases from a serious acute health complication (or is even in danger of death). He therefore expects that he will not only call for the help of the emergency medical service, but that he will also be able to communicate with it in his native language in a given usually very stressful situation.

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