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FAQ
Question: What am I supposed to do in case of emergency medical care?
Answer: If you are reluctant or can’t wait for your assistance company to arrange a doctor’s advice, you may call for a local ground ambulance. The list of the phone numbers is given here, and it is the fastest option of getting medical care. Please be aware that all phone numbers given here must be dialed from the local telephones.
Health care system in Uzbekistan
According to the constitution, the citizens of Uzbekistan enjoy the right to free medical service rendered via the network of state medical establishments - polyclinics, first aid stations, and state hospitals. Healthcare is financed from the budget of the state and makes up 9.9 % of the total budget expenditures. However, due to the complications of the transitional period the real amount of the budgetary means allocated for healthcare has somewhat reduced, this is connected with the advancing growth of prices on medicine, medical equipment, etc. According to the data of 1998, 1175 hospitals are functioning in the Republic. The total amount of the beds are 187 thousand beds or 58.2 beds per 10 thousand people.
One physician is per 295 people. Over 3000 polyclinics operate in the country. For the development of the market of medical services and increasing their quality, the state promotes the development of paid medicine, supports the development of private clinics network. At present 59 private hospitals with a total number of 15 thousand beds are functioning on the basis of self-repayment. Approximately 3 thousand physicians have the license to hold their private practice. Beginning with 2001 the system of medical insurance of population will be stage-by-stage introduced. The system of rendering every type of specialized aid - cardiology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, neurology - have been set up in the republic.
Indices of Population's Health
The average life span is a major index of population's health. It is 70.2 years in Uzbekistan. The index for towns and cities is 71.5 years, and for rural areas 69.1 years. The average life span of women is higher than men by about 4.8 - 4.9 years. The annual birth rate is 2.300 infants per 100 thousand people.
In recent years there is a tendency in the republic towards the reduction of the death rate, which favorably distinguishes Uzbekistan from many countries of the former USSR. The Death rate from every cause per 100,000 population is 580 persons, with it 50 % of mortality is connected with spread diseases of the system of circulation of the blood, 6.8 % - with malignant formations.
This is connected with the stable socio-political situation in the country. However, it should be noted there is a certain growth in the sickness rate of hepatitis, tuberculosis. The registered annual use of alcohol by an adult is 1.2 liters.
Development of Healthcare Network
In December 1992, the first rehabilitation center, Umid, for the disabled suffering from the cerebral palsy opened in Tashkent. The first cardiology center in the Fergana valley opened in Andijan; it is equipped with medical facilities from Germany, Japan, and Sweden. In 1998 the Republican urology center opened its doors. Since 1996 the dental center with children's hospital has been operating in Ferghana. The healthcare center called Drujba (Friendship) was formed in Tashkent in cooperation with South Korean medics. In December 1997 the first group of patients was admitted to a new rehabilitation center in the town of Navoi for the disabled who took part in the clean-up of the accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power station. A wide network of private dental clinics is operating in the republic.
