Bashkortostan's experience in COVID hospitals construction is one of best in country

At a meeting of the Council for the Civil Society Institutions and Human Rights Development, which took place in Moscow on Human Rights Day with the participation of Vladimir Putin, the issue of an acute shortage of beds for patients with infectious diseases was discussed. In particular, public figure Irina Kirkora appealed to the president with an initiative to build new infectious diseases hospitals and buildings in the country as soon as possible. In this vein, she called Bashkortostan's experience in constructing COVID hospitals, one of the most advanced in the country.

"According to available information, in almost 50 regions of the country, the rapid construction of new infectious diseases hospitals and buildings with a capacity of 100 to 500 beds is required, including the ones with the rapid construction of buildings technology from standard structures and equipping them with modern medical equipment. We see such examples in Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, Chelyabinsk region. The speed of decision making and their implementation is more important than ever now," Irina Kirkora emphasized the problem.

In her opinion, such hospitals in the future can be transformed into children's, oncological, therapeutic departments because these are non-temporary structures. Their service life reaches 50 years.

Vladimir Putin listened attentively to the HRC member's proposals and agreed with the fairness of her remarks about the shortage of infectious treatment facilities in the country.

On December 1 in Sterlitamak, the construction of a new Infection Center for COVID patients was completed. Its construction began on October 10 and was completed in less than two months. The hospital's total capacity is 74 isolated wards, including 60 wards for round-the-clock stay (40 for adults and 20 for children) and 14 intensive care wards. 282 beds can be placed here, up to 312 beds can be deployed in case of emergency. The center will also include the admission and diagnostic department (including rooms for computed tomography, endoscopy, ultrasound diagnostics, functional diagnostics, and an X-ray room). 36 lung ventilators, a new ultra-modern computed tomography unit, an X-ray machine, equipment complexes for the surgical and delivery unit, an intensive care unit, as well as a medical gas supply system, and an oxygen production station are available there. Its own helipad for air ambulance has been built. The medical center provides a dormitory for 40 employees.

This is the second such large medical facility built in the republic in record time. The first one, the Zubovo Infection Center, was built in just two months and admitted its first patients on June 3, 2020.