Health care reform is a priority of state policy

»»»

After the collapse of the USSR, Uzbekistan, like other CIS countries, was confronted with the consequences of this system, which had to be changed. In the early stages, the state wanted to reduce the high percentage of maternal and infant mortality, develop the private sector, reduce the number of hospitals and introduce private services, thereby retaining the state budget, and improve medical equipment in remote areas of the country.

One of the first steps for this was the Law “On the Protection of Citizens’ Health”, which defined the principles of health protection. For example, the priority of prevention of diseases in the form of vaccinations, accessibility and equal rights in terms of medical care for all segments of the population, as well as the importance of timely training of doctors. This law became the basis for further health care reforms.

Over the past two years, 50 decrees, decrees and orders of the President, more than 70 decrees and orders of the Cabinet of Ministers have been adopted in the field of health. 6 new scientific and practical medical centers were organized, their total number reached 16. In the regions, 10 branches of the centers were opened to create even greater amenities for the population. In the district and city hospitals, 306 new specialized departments were organized, 1.2 thousand emergency rooms.

In general, this year from the State budget for medicine was allocated 40 percent more funds compared with 2017. Next year it is planned to allocate 30 percent more funds to this sector than in 2018.

The recent presidential decree “On Measures to Strengthen Material Incentives for Employees of State Medical Institutions and Public Health Authorities” was another important step in this direction. In accordance with it, the wages of medical workers will be increased by 20 percent from December 1 of the current year and another 15 percent from April 1, 2019.

Many decrees and decrees have been adopted, ample opportunities have been created for the sphere, and current issues have been resolved. However, the results expected from the health care system are not visible. Especially in districts, remote settlements, residents do not feel the effect of serious and fundamental changes in medical care, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.

Thus, the level of material and technical base and the availability of qualified personnel of primary health care institutions, district central hospitals do not meet the requirements. As a result, patients have to incur large expenses when arriving in the city of Tashkent or traveling abroad.

In this regard, it was noted the need for timely identification and solution of problems in the medical system, a complete re-examination of the state of affairs in the regions, covering at the same time both rural medical stations and family clinics, and central medical institutions.

The need to strengthen the interaction between the republican, regional, district and rural levels of medical care is indicated. At the same time, first of all, preventive work and medical examinations in the communities will be well organized. Patients, if necessary, will be sent to the district and regional centers. And regional medical associations will be treated on their own and refer seriously ill patients to regional and republican institutions. In turn, the republican specialized scientific and practical medical centers will implement a unified methodological, technological, therapeutic and preventive policy in their profile and help strengthen the health of the population.

It was noted that the work on the prevention of non-communicable diseases is not up to standard. The activity of a number of relevant specialized centers has been criticized.

In this regard, measures to address the existing shortcomings were discussed, after examining the state of the material and technical base and treatment in the republican specialized scientific and practical medical centers, AIDS prevention, the development and implementation of legal mechanisms for the compulsory examination of people who returned from work abroad was considered.

The state will continue to pay more attention to the further expansion of the network of private medical institutions. It was noted that in our country there are great opportunities for the development of all areas of private medicine, the provision of medical services not only to compatriots, but also to citizens of neighboring countries.

Therefore, the responsible persons were tasked with expanding the network of private medical institutions and creating medical hubs in major cities such as Tashkent, Samarkand, Andijan and others.

In this regard, it is pointed out the need to strengthen the prevention of diseases through the promotion of a healthy lifestyle and a culture of proper nutrition among the population. The directions of development of medicine in the medium and long term were also discussed. The President gave instructions on the elaboration of a draft concept for the development of the health care system in Uzbekistan until 2025.

Today, in all developed countries, a system of compulsory health insurance has been introduced, which makes it possible to reduce budget expenditures and improve the quality of medical services.

The meeting noted the need for the phased introduction of the compulsory health insurance system in our country from 2021, the development of relevant laws and regulations with the involvement of consultants from South Korea, Singapore, Germany and other countries.

Measures have been identified for the development of public-private partnership in medicine, equipping some medical institutions with high-tech equipment based on this mechanism, and granting them complete financial independence.

We think that having realized all its capabilities and potential, Uzbekistan will achieve all positive results in this area.