Salary of family doctors and nurses to increase

north_east

2 Deputy Ministers of Health dismissed

Uzbekistan will introduce a new system under which family doctors will earn up to \$1,500 per month, while nurses will receive between \$600 and \$800. The announcement was made on May 7 during a videoconference chaired by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, focused on the next phase of healthcare sector reforms.

The initiative aims to improve the quality of primary healthcare services. The President illustrated the need for reform using the example of the "Uzbekistan" polyclinic in Ishtikhan district, Samarkand region.

Seven neighborhoods are connected to this polyclinic, but six family doctors are occupying nine positions and are struggling to handle the workload. Additionally, six positions remain vacant.

The current guaranteed medicine package includes 90 types of drugs, but due to a lack of proper planning, less than half reach the polyclinic. Furthermore, lab analyses conducted at the polyclinic are not recognized by hospitals.

Despite the majority of cases involving children's illnesses, family doctors lack the skills to function as pediatricians. Currently, only 1.5 gynecologists serve 9,000 women of childbearing age.

Thirty-five percent of the population suffers from chronic diseases such as cardiovascular conditions, diabetes, and gastrointestinal disorders. However, early detection, prevention, and complication reduction efforts by medical teams remain insufficient. As a result, a systemic overhaul has been decided.

Under the new approach, a bilateral agreement will be signed between medical teams and the populations they serve, outlining mutual rights and responsibilities. Citizens will have the right to freely choose their family doctor, and private family doctors will also be included in the system.

A guaranteed package of medical care will be approved, with services and medications fully covered by the state budget.

The number of obstetricians and gynecologists in polyclinics will double, and one pediatrician will be assigned for every 3,000 children.

All family doctors and nurses will now work full-time; partial employment rates such as half or quarter positions will be eliminated.

The structure of healthcare facilities will be optimized. Seven large polyclinics serving more than 12,000 residents will be reorganized, while 27 smaller ones will also undergo restructuring. The central district polyclinic will be converted into the consultation and diagnostic department of the district hospital, where all specialized doctors will be based.

Currently, the base salary for family doctors in these polyclinics is \$500, and for nurses, \$300. Upon obtaining qualification certificates, doctors and nurses will receive equivalent bonuses.

If a medical team actively visits households, engages with patients suffering from chronic diseases, educates them on managing their conditions, and works to detect illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, stroke, and heart disease early—thereby reducing emergency and hospital admissions—doctors will receive an additional \$500, while nurses will receive an extra \$300.

It was emphasized that even a single case of heart attack, stroke, premature maternal or child death, or disability due to chronic illness in the neighborhood should be treated as an emergency.