Health care activity is an activity that ensures the provision of health care to citizens, implemented through the health care system.

Health care providers include: health institutions in public and private ownership, higher education institutions in the field of health sciences, and other legal entities authorized by special laws to perform health-related activities (other legal entities), private practices, healthcare workers who perform healthcare activities, other higher education institutions, i.e. scientific-educational and scientific institutions, with the opinion of the Ministry.

The following sections present the types of private practice, who may establish them, the conditions that must be fulfilled prior to commencement of operations, and the registration procedure.

Providing health care services through private practice increases the accessibility of health services to users, encourages competitiveness, and contributes to the improvement of service quality.

Private practice may begin operations only after meeting all legal requirements and obtaining the necessary permits from the competent authorities.

Forms of Private Practice

Private practice may be established as:

• a medical office (general, specialist, or narrow specialist)
• a dental office (general or specialist);
• a polyclinic;
• a laboratory (for biochemistry with hematology and immunochemistry, microbiology with virology, pathology with cytology);
• a private pharmacy;
• an outpatient clinic (for health care and rehabilitation);
• a dental laboratory.

A polyclinic may be established for at least two different fields of medicine or dental medicine.

Private practice cannot perform health activities in the field of emergency medical aid, preparation of blood and blood components, collection, storage and transplantation of organs, cells and tissues as parts of the human body, production of serum and vaccines, patho-anatomical-autopsy and forensic medicine activities, as well as health activities in the field of public health.

Who can establish a Private Practice?

Private practice may be established by an unemployed health care professional or a retired health care professional who meets the prescribed conditions.

A medical office, dental office, polyclinic, laboratory (for biochemistry with hematology and immunochemistry, microbiology with virology, pathology with cytology), or a private pharmacy may be established by a health care professional with completed integrated academic studies in the corresponding health discipline.

An outpatient clinic (for health care and rehabilitation) and a laboratory for dental technology can be established by a health worker with an appropriate high or secondary education in the health profession, and the activity can only be performed on the basis of a report from the competent medical doctor or dental medicine doctor, which contains instructions on the application of therapy, that is, the production of prosthetic restorations or orthodontic appliances.

Determining Compliance with Conditions

Private practice may perform health care activities only if it meets the conditions prescribed by the Law on Health Care and the Rulebook on Detailed Conditions for Performing Health Care Activities in Health Institutions and Other Forms of Health Services, including conditions regarding personnel, equipment, premises, medicines, and medical devices.

A polyclinic, in addition to the founder who operates as an entrepreneur, must employ health care professionals with appropriate education and valid licenses issued by the competent professional chamber, employed on a permanent basis, for each field of medicine or dental medicine covered by the polyclinic.

Compliance with these conditions is determined by the Ministry of Health through inspection of submitted documentation and an on-site visit. Private practice may perform only those health activities defined in the Ministry’s decision confirming compliance with the prescribed requirements.

Private practices that use sources of ionizing radiation must also meet additional conditions prescribed by the law regulating radiation protection.

Registration with the Business Registers Agency

After compliance with the prescribed conditions has been verified and the Ministry of Health issues its approval, the private practice is entered into the Register of the Business Registers Agency.

Private practice performs health care activities in the form of an entrepreneurial business, and a health care professional may establish only one private practice. The date of entry into the Serbian Business Registers Agency marks the official start of operations.

Information on private practices performing health care activities can be found in the Unified Register of Health Entities maintained by the Serbian Business Registers Agency, available via this link.

Conclusion

The establishment of private practice in the Republic of Serbia represents a complex procedure, in which the business entity must undergo various administrative processes and meet requirements in the fields of health care, taxation, commercial, and labor law, considering the importance of health care activities and the vital role of private practices in the overall health system.

Unlike the usual model of business entity registration, the founder of a private practice, before registration with the Serbian Business Registers Agency, must first complete a preparatory and control process conducted by competent authorities to ensure the lawful and safe provision of health care services.

This article is to be considered as exclusively informative, with no intention to provide legal advice. If you should need additional information, please contact us directly.