The “Partners for Growth” Program in Pleven Four Years after the Beginning – Achievements and Pеrspectives

Abstract

The found of a twinning partnership with established reference centers for rare endocrine diseases decreases the time until diagnosis and initiation of appropriate treatment. We present the way of conducting the partnership program of the Bulgarian Pediatric Association “Partners for Growth” in the Clinic of Pediatrics, University Hospital “G. Stranski ”- Pleven, with achievements and perspectives.

Patients and methods: The implementation research program for diagnosis and treatment of children with sort stature (SS) started as a pilot in Pleven in March 2018 with assessment of the knowledge of GPs in diagnosing children with growth disorders, assessment of available resources in the hospital and screening of children with SS. This was followed by training of the newly formed team and diagnosing the patients with pathological SS.

Results: The surveyed GPs measure the children in their lists, but cannot assess them due to missing national standards. New diagnostic tests for the university hospital have been introduced (n = 7), the qualification skills of doctors (n = 8) and nurses (n = 4) from the multidisciplinary units have been increased. Prospectively for a period of 18 months 128 children were evaluated aged 7.94 ± 5.2 years, consulted in an outpatient setting,   53 children aged 9.74 ± 4.5 years, were hospitalized. Treatment with growth hormone  started 11/53 children (20.8%) an average age of 8.14 ± 4.4 years. Until December 31, 2021, a total of 17 children are being treated in Pleven. An organization has been established for training and follow-up of newly diagnosed patients in Pleven. An opportunity has been created for sustainability and reproducibility of the program, regulated partnerships and easier access to the Expert Center.

Acknowledgments: The Program “Partners for Growth” is run by the Bulgarian Pediatric Association with support from the Pfizer company with unrestricted  educational grant.

Key words: short stature, growth hormone deficiency, childhood, partnership program, implementation research

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Address for correspondence:

Dept. of Pediatrics, MU-Pleven,
UMHAT “Georgi Stranski”- Pleven
1, “St. Kl. Ohridski”, Str.
5800, Pleven, Bulgaria
e-mail: irina.halvadjian@gmail.com