Klekovski: Multiple sclerosis treatment to be distributed closer to patients, with around 2,000 people under the care of the Neurology Clinic

The Ministry of Health presented protocols today for distributing multiple sclerosis treatment. The event was attended by representatives of the University Neurology Clinic, the St. Erasmus Special Hospital for Orthopedics and Traumatology in Ohrid, the 8 September City General Hospital in Skopje, and the Clinical Hospital in Shtip.

According to Ministry of Health figures, around 2,000 patients with multiple sclerosis are under the care of the Neurology Clinic. Of these, approximately 1,800 receive active treatment, while new diagnoses continue to rise. In 2025, 115 new cases were recorded.

Under the dispensing system, 835 patients from 48 municipalities receive immunomodulatory medicines. Until now, each of them has had to collect their treatment from the Neurology Clinic in Skopje. Of this group, 491 patients live outside the Skopje region, and many make the monthly trip with a companion. This brings recurring expenses, absences from work and other difficulties for people living with a chronic illness.

Minister Klekovski said decentralization would allow more patients to receive services closer to home while preventing a bottleneck at the Skopje clinic. He also said that a record 451 million denars has been allocated this year for multiple sclerosis medicines.

“This is a model that makes life easier for patients, as they will receive treatment closer to home. At the same time, it creates opportunities for healthcare professionals in regional hospitals to develop their work further as their responsibilities expand,” Klekovski said. According to him, the same model could be applied in other fields, including oncology.

Jovan Bozhinovski, director of the University Neurology Clinic, said the initiative responds to a request made for years by the Association for the Fight Against Multiple Sclerosis.

He explained that the regulations specify the types of medicines, responsibilities, criteria that centers must meet and how the procedure will be carried out. Under the protocol, each hospital takes on its assigned duties, appointing a neurologist in charge, a pharmacist and trained nurses. The centers must also ensure that medicines are stored and administered according to the prescribed regimen, record every dose and report any adverse reaction within 24 hours.

The Neurology Clinic will retain professional, financial and organizational responsibility. It will supply the medicines, while the Commission for Immunomodulatory Therapy will decide on each patient’s treatment. The clinic will also bill the Health Insurance Fund for the treatment and inspect the relevant centers at least once a year, Bozhinovski explained.