Murtaza Rakhimov: ”We mustn’t save on people’s prosperity”

The regular number of the newspaper “Medical Messenger”, which published the interview of President RB Murtaza Rakhimov, is published and found on sale. Bashkortostan doesn’t intend to save on people’s prosperity, struggling with the after-effects of the global crisis and in the Republic, where social policy is considered the top priority the authority is aimed not just at preservation but at the increase of social support for people. Special attention is paid to health sphere. The text of the interview is given below (shortly):

Question: Situation with population’s health and organization of health system are considered one of the main criteria in efficiency of executive power boards. What is the situation in this sphere in Republic of Bashkortostan, M-r President?

Answer: Despite rather difficult economic situation Bashkortostan is going on executing all its social obligations before citizens RB as well as the whole country, including the health sphere. We determined the long-term priorities in this sphere and approved the Concept of medical care development. Our Republic was determined as one of the best Russian regions re step-by-step reorganization of round-the-clock stationary medical care, lowering the level of population hospitalization and efficient use of local medical facilities. It is said in the report of Russian Ministry of regional development that according to the results-2007 Bashkortostan stayed in the Top5 of the best Russian region.

Question: How did you manage to achieve such results?

Answer: We’ve worked up the whole lawful file, aimed at perfection of health protection sphere. In particular, the priorities in sphere of health protection are determined by the Concept on development and reforming of health protection and medical science in Bashkortostan for the period till 2010. In 2008 the volume of means, allocated for health protection, made up more than 23,7 billion rubles, i.e. it grew up nearly three times for the last three years! For four previous years we’ve managed to refurbish medical institutions in 14 regions RB.

Question: Have these essential financial injections influenced upon the demographic situation in Bashkortostan?

Answer: I’d like to underscore that the improvement of the demographic situation is considered one of the crucial tasks in health sphere and this is the undoubted index of those positive changes, which occur in this sphere and it is good that we can see positive results already now. In 2008 the birth rate in Bashkortostan has grown up nearly by 7% and natural loss dropped 3,3 times. 54 thousand babies were born in the region – 15% more than in 2007. In 2008 growth of birth rate was observed in seven towns and 42 regions RB. As a result, population RB increased 4,5 thousand people. Now it makes up about 4 million 57 thousand people. In a whole Bashkortostan is found in the list of the first 25 Russian regions with the most favorable demographic showings. Bashkortostan stands on the first place in Volga federal district by birth rate.

Question: Bashkortostan is mainly considered an agrarian region, where 40% of people live in villages. How does rural health care feel itself?

Answer: We pay great attention to development of rural medicine, reconstructing and erecting modern hospitals and obstetrical points in the countryside. More than 2 thousand such points serve people in our Republic and similar situation is observed just in few other Russian regions. We’ve founded 18 inter-regional centers of specialized medical care to raise quality and accessibility of health care for villagers.

Question: During the crisis the calls to save means can be heard from every quarter. What work is done in this direction in the Republican health system?

Answer: I always said and go on insisting that we mustn’t save on people’s prosperity and we mustn’t freeze our projects in this sphere even during the crisis.

Question: M-r President, how do you estimate the results of the national project “Health”?

Answer: I am sure that achievement of this project plays essential role in development of our health protection, including its personnel staff. The number of primary link medical workers is increased. More than 1200 district doctors and general practitioners were trained within the frames of the project. More than 5 thousand medical workers have raised their qualification nonetheless we still face certain problems in this sphere.

Question: M-r President, The program for additional medical provision still provokes more questions than answers. How can the situation in this sphere be cardinally altered?

Answer: Understanding the level of responsibility on preservation of once reached level of medicinal provision before our population the authority in Bashkortostan undertakes the anti-crisis steps re provision of people with rather cheap medicines. We keep strict control over the level of prices in our drugstores. Limited extra charges are set in Bashkortostan on all medicines and medical wares.

Question: For further development of medical branch Bashkir authority has approved the long-term Program on development of health protection sphere till 2020. What does this program include?

Answer: Here exact tasks and the ways to solve these tasks are outlined: prior development of medical prophylactics, provision of population with qualified and accessible medical care, further development of the legislative base for republican health system, development of IT-technologies in this sphere etc. Further development of primary medical-sanitary high-tech care and lowering of death rate are the main directions of activity in accordance with the Program and the best medical care for moms and babies, standardization of medical services and formation of healthy way of life among population are the prior goals.