President chairs a meeting on improving the effectiveness of reforms in the healthcare sector

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev chaired a videoconference on measures to improve the effectiveness of reforms in the healthcare sector.

Peace and health are the main values in a person’s life. Their implementation is an important direction of the country’s social policy.
The medical sector is being gradually improved based on the Healthcare System Development Concept of Uzbekistan. More than 20 decrees and resolutions aimed at improving the quality of medical care have been adopted over the past year. This year, 21 trillion UZS were allocated from the budget, which is 3 times more than in 2017.
However, much remains to be done to improve the efficiency of the system. During the surveys, only 13 percent of respondents noted that they felt positive changes in the medical sphere.
The Head of the state outlined five areas of further transformation.
The first is to turn the primary link of medicine into a system of early detection and treatment of diseases.
The second is to increase the volume and radically improve the quality of narrow-profile medical services through specialized centers.
The third is to reduce paperwork, bureaucracy and corruption in the sphere through digitalization.
The fourth is to develop competition and expand the participation of the private sector in all areas of medicine.
Fifth – to increase the level of knowledge of medical workers, to develop medical education and science.
Practical aspects of the implementation of these tasks were discussed at the meeting.

“Imagine how many people will be satisfied, will restore their health if we implement reforms in medicine in a high-quality, targeted way. Changes will definitely occur when the responsible persons of the sphere, hokims will consult with each rural doctor, nurse, study the world experience and take measures”, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.

Priority should be given to improving the quality of services in family medical centers and polyclinics.

Today, primary care facilities have the potential to provide treatment for 87 types of diseases. To do this, it is necessary to provide the population with qualified personnel, as well as 50 types of medicines and 16 types of medical devices for emergency care.

The President noted the importance of treating chronic diseases in primary care, especially strengthening the prevention of cardiovascular and gastrointestinal diseases. It is planned to introduce a package of free medical services for the treatment of diseases in the primary link.

The need was noted for improving the skills of family doctors together with the World Health Organization, attracting specialists to remote areas within the framework of the Rural Doctor Program. The task was set to improve the standards of the staff of family medical centers and polyclinics, the qualification requirements for doctors and mid-level medical workers, and the standards of equipment.

There are 17 specialized medical centers in the country. They are conducting medical examinations at places, as a result of which diseases are detected at an early stage and access to medical care is facilitated.

In particular, phthisiology and pediatrics centers have opened their offices in all regions, thanks to which the number of patients coming to Tashkent has decreased by almost 20 percent over the past two years.

The Head of the state noted the need for effectively linking regional, district and city hospitals to specialized centers and bringing qualified medical services closer to the population.
Thus, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, respiratory and dermatological diseases that do not require surgical intervention can be carried out in the districts. At the regional level, there are sufficient conditions for the organization of surgical interventions in eye microsurgery, urology, traumatology, thoracic and abdominal surgery.
But in the republican centers, priority should be given to difficult-to-diagnose diseases and high-tech operations.
In this regard, it was instructed to approve the list of diseases to be treated in regional and district hospitals, as well as to take measures to improve the skills of doctors.
Hokims were tasked with providing regional medical institutions with high-tech equipment and medical devices, such as angiographs, laparoscopes, and artificial blood circulation devices.
It was also noted that the licensing process of private medical organizations should be simplified and fully digitalized.
Today, modern technologies are being introduced into the activities of medical institutions, of which there are more than 3 thousand in the country. 423 primary care institutions are connected to the Electronic Polyclinic information system.
However, not all of them have created favorable conditions for working in a new way. Some medical facilities do not have enough computers. Although 28 billion UZS have been allocated from the budget for the digitalization of the sphere. Activities in this direction are slow.
In this regard, it is planned to introduce the post of deputy head for digitalization and development of public-private partnerships in the regional health departments. In addition, 2 thousand staff of nurse operators will be introduced in all medical institutions.
It was instructed to launch an electronic system for issuing orders by August 1, 2021, integrate all regional and specialized centers, and fully digitalize the paperwork of all polyclinics in Tashkent.

Issues of improving the health of mothers and children were also discussed at the meeting. First of all, the importance of promoting a healthy lifestyle and proper nutrition for children was emphasized. The task was set to conduct targeted screenings based on the analysis of the situation in each region.

It was noted that perinatal and screening centers in the regions will join into a single cluster with the organization of district centers.

Another priority in healthcare is the development of medical education, science and training.

The current methodology of medical education was approved 30-40 years ago, and most textbooks do not meet international standards. Universities and specialized centers have no motivation to increase their scientific potential.

Therefore, it is necessary to carry out the transformation of medical universities, to open new directions for training managers and specialists in working with high-tech equipment, based on advanced foreign experience. An instruction was given to send talented young people studying in residency and master’s programs to foreign internships.

“Trillions are allocated every year. International loans are attracted to the healthcare system. Our people should feel the effect of these funds”, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.

Responsible persons’ information on the discussed issues was heard

UzA