18.03.2022

The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev holds an open dialogue with the representatives of healthcare.

A health is the main value and basic human need. Hence, the President pays a special attention to the health issues. During his trips to the regions, the President often visits medical facilities, carries on a conversation with doctors and visits patients.

However, the meeting with the staff members of this field is being held in this format for the first time. More than a thousand people gathered in the Palace of International Forums in Tashkent and about 20 thousand healthcare workers and members of the public gathered in regional studios.

At the beginning of his speech, the President has welcomed the participants and expressed his pleasure of meeting with dedicated medical workers on the eve of the Navruz holiday.

“The truth of life demonstrates the fact that it is only a healthy people and comprehensively developed nation is capable for great accomplishments. From of old, our people have known and cherished doctors as selfless individuals who have devoted their entire self to such noble and good deed as safeguarding a human health. Since, the people entrust you their most valuable wealth – their lives”, Shavkat Mirziyoyev has said.

In recent years, a large-scale work has been accomplished in this direction based on foreign experience. The volume of funds allocated to the sphere has increased. In particular, in 2022 alone 24 trillion Uzbek soums or in comparison with the year 2016 – four times more funds are being allocated to the sphere.

During the past five years, the funds being allotted to providing the hospitals and emergency stations with medicines and medical items have been increased 12 times. During this period, more than $700 million were attracted from the international financial institutions to better the healthcare system.

Starting from last year, the medical brigades have been established working on an ‘individual-house’-based system at each makhalla (the local residential community area). Since 2021, 66 types of medicines have been provided free of charge to the people in the primary healthcare link. At present, people, by not wasting another time, are obtaining the necessary medicines in treatment of cold, blood pressure, heart attack, diabetes, digestion and respiratory diseases at family doctor’s stations and polyclinics.

With a view of expanding a quality health services to the population, 20 thousand mid-level medical workers have joined a primary system. Besides, 801 family polyclinics located at the rural areas received the modern ultrasound and ECG instruments.

Thus, the new eight types of medical services were established at villages and makhallas. In particular, 12 million people in the group of nearly-menace health conditions have started to go through a targeted screening.

The scope of medical services that require a high qualification and technology is also expanding. More than 100 branches of the 23 specialized medical centers have started their operations on the ground. As a result, 210 types of surgeries and diagnosis procedures, which were undertaken before in the capital city, have been made possible at the local hospitals. Along with this, 130 types of surgeries have started to be carried out for the first time at the regional hospitals and yet 60 types of them – at the district hospitals.

Before each year the thousands of our compatriots had to travel abroad seeking treatment. Now, due to the new conditions and opportunities created, our doctors perform expensive operations that were previously performed abroad. Over the past five years, 200 types of new surgical operations have been introduced in the clinics in Uzbekistan, including kidney and liver transplantation. Thus, thanks to kidney transplantation operations carried out in the capital and the regions, about 700 of our citizens managed to save their lives.

A transition has been made to an open and transparent new system of providing services to the needy segments of the population. A list of diseases subject to free treatment in specialized centers was compiled, a referral for medical care is issued on the basis of an «electronic queue» to people who really need it. Most importantly, with such a system, funds are allocated not to the center, but to a specific patient who needs treatment.

Another of the biggest changes in the health system has been the development of private medicine along with public medicine. For example, if previously private services were provided only in dentistry, now private clinics operate in almost all areas of healthcare. Their number has reached 8 thousand.

A special attention is paid to increasing the number of medical educational institutions, training personnel with modern knowledge and qualifications. In particular, over the past five years, 6 new medical universities have been created, their total number has reached 14 and admission quotas have increased 4 times.

In order to guarantee the provision of qualified specialists to the regions, a targeted admission to study has been established based on the application of the regions. In addition, 1.5 thousand doctors have improved their qualifications at well-known foreign clinics and universities.

The President has expressed his gratitude to the World Health Organization, the German Development Bank, UNICEF, USAID, JICA, TIKA, KOICA, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, the Saudi Development Fund and many other international organizations that supported the reforms of our country in the sphere of health.

During the open dialogue on the topic «The reforms in medicine – in the name of human honor and dignity», the next tasks are identified, the topical issues in the healthcare are considered.

“Today, we need to name a gain – a gain, a shortcoming – a shortcoming, by capably diagnosing the «disease» in the system and seeking a treatment for them”, the President has said.

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