Healthcare - The Times Of Central Asia

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Kyrgyz Surgeons Performed Unique Heart Surgery in One Minute

The National Centre of Cardiology and Therapy in Bishkek has announced its implementation of an Emergency Cardiology program to provide emergency care to patients with acute myocardial infarction. The authorities' purchase of new heart surgery equipment including a machine to create ultra-precise 3D reconstructions of the heart on a monitor and the importation of U.S.-made Azurion-7 devices for diagnosing and treating cardiovascular diseases was made possible by the allocation of $1.5 million from the World Bank. In his address at the presentation ceremony, Kyrgyz Prime Minister Akylbek Zhaparov welcomed the much needed acquisition of the state -of -the- art, high-tech equipment which will greatly reduce the number of patients dying from heart disease each year. Today, the centre reported that with the aid of new high-tech X-ray surgical equipment and Chinese colleagues' specialised knowledge of its intricacies, doctors performed a successful heart operation in a record time of just one minute and eight seconds. According to Kyrgyz doctors, the patient had been admitted 'with an open oval window'; a particularly dangerous symptom of cardiovascular disease because the presence of holes between the valves of the heart can cause air to eventually enter the brain and lead to a stroke. "We are monitoring the patient's condition and she is doing very well. She was only given a local anaesthetic and in 12 hours, can go home and slowly return to her everyday life," stated Chinese professor Shang Xiaaoqe after the operation. Almost half the patients attending the National Centre of Cardiology for strokes suffer from this type of disease but thanks to the new equipment and adoption of methods used by Chinese medics, its treatment will no longer pose a problem for Kyrgyz doctors. In addition to advice from their Chinese counterparts, Kyrgyz medics have arranged visits from Russian and Kazakh doctors to share their experience and best practices.

Kyrgyzstan’s ‘Be Responsible!’ Health Program Screens 680,000 Men

The key aim of Kyrgyzstan's 'Be Responsible!' program is to encourage men to attend primary health care institutions for check-ups and specifically, the early detection of non-communicable and chronic diseases. According to a new report by the country's Ministry of Health, in just under a month, more than 680,000 men visited family doctors. For 149,000, it was either their first ever visit or the first in two years. The Ministry of Health's press centre hailed the success of the widespread campaign to attract attendances saying, "More than 44,000 men were categorized as having a high risk of cardiovascular diseases, and almost 33,000, a high risk of diabetes. The total number of men who visited medical institutions amounted to 47 percent of those over 18 years of age living in the country." Cardiovascular disease, cancer, lung disease and diabetes are categorized as chronic diseases. Data collected by the ministry indicates that in 2022, 52.1% of the mortality rate in men was caused by cardiovascular disease; 12.2% by cancer, and 5.5% by respiratory diseases. Doctors also drew attention to poor nutrition including a high salt intake and insufficient consumption of fruits and vegetables; the use of tobacco, alcohol abuse, and low levels of physical activity as contributing factors to poor health. With financial support from the Swiss government, the first screening campaign for Kyrgyz men was conducted in 2019. In response to doctors' reports of the rising number of men taking better care of their health, the Ministry of Health issued an order for the program to be conducted nationwide, on an annual basis, from 2023 onwards.

Uzbekistan Taking Steps Towards Cleaner Water

In December 2023, a United Nations Development Program (UNDP) delegation participated in the opening of a refurbished water treatment plant in the village of Shuyt in Uzbekistan's autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan. It will provide clean drinking water to 1,500 residents of the surrounding area. This is a joint UNDP, UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) program called Empowering Youth Towards a Bright Future through Green and Innovative Development in the Aral Sea Region, funded by the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund for Human Security for the Aral Sea Region in Uzbekistan. The project has the support of the governments of Uzbekistan, Norway, the European Union (EU), Finland, South Korea, Germany, and Alwaleed Philanthropies. UNDP, in cooperation with partner organizations, systematically assists remote regions of Uzbekistan to establish access to drinking water. Under a small-grants program implemented by the joint UNDP/GEF and the Uzbek State Committee of Ecology project for sustainable use of natural resources and forest management in key mountainous regions important for globally significant biodiversity, a 6.5-km pipeline was laid in the village of Chukur in the Kashkadarya region of Uzbekistan. It has provided about 1,500 people with clean drinking water for which the villagers used to walk long distances with buckets to the nearest spring. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 70% of all diseases globally are associated with poor-quality drinking water that does not meet sanitary and hygienic standards. The region of Priaralie demonstrates the large-scale problems which can arise in the absence of potable water. In the most remote areas of this region, groundwater is the main source of fresh water - but such water cannot be used directly for drinking due to the presence of a large number of harmful and poisonous substances such as pesticides, mineral salts in large quantities, and heavy metals. That's caused by the systematic pollution of underground aquifers and the lack of modern drinking water treatment systems. All this has led to a massive deterioration in the health of the population of the Aral Sea region. According to the Pravda Vostoka newspaper, as of June 2023, the drinking water availability rate in Priaralie was 71%, and at the beginning of 2019, only 52.4%. By the end of 2023, 5,473 households were connected to water-supply networks, and water meters were installed for households free of charge. Construction of treatment facilities using modern standards is underway in the region. Since December 2021, construction has been underway in several districts of the country on 10.73 kilometers of drinking-water supply and wastewater networks, and three wastewater treatment plants, with a projected cost of $3 million. Construction of a wastewater treatment plant with a capacity of 30,000 cubic meters of water per day is ongoing in the city of Nukus, along with 16 pumping stations and wastewater disposal networks with a length of 88 kilometers. The projects are expected to increase the local population's drinking water supply by more than 74% this year.

Turkish Doctors to Help Create a Centre for Organ Transplants in Kyrgyzstan

The Kyrgyz Ministry of Health has reported on a visit to Bishkek by doctors from Turkey's Inonu University to assess the potential of Kyrgyz clinics to perform high-tech operations. The delegation from Turkey's leading centre for organ transplantation was greeted by the President of Kyrgyzstan. Accompanied by the Minister of Health, they then visited the National Surgical Centre where plans are in place to perform kidney transplants, and afterwards, the Centre for Maternal and Child Health, which plans to perform bone marrow transplants. After receiving the experts' recommendations on the readiness of operating rooms and intensive care units to receive patients, Kyrgyz Health Minister Alymkadyr Beishenaliyev reported, "To establish a successful liver transplant operative, $2 million will be allocated for the purchase the necessary equipment. Twenty million Kyrgyz som ($220,000) will also be allocated to repair the operating and resuscitation departments of the National Surgical Centre." He added that apart from those issues, the Kyrgyz hospitals meet all the requirements necessary for organ transplants. Head of the Turkish delegation, Inonu University Rector Ahmet Kizilay, drew attention to the fact that to date, 65 Kyrgyz doctors had received training at their medical centre, considered one of the world's leading clinics for organ transplantation, and a further 33 Kyrgyz specialists were currently on site to improve their qualifications. At the beginning of the year, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov signed a law allowing state and private clinics in Kyrgyzstan to perform organ transplants, with the provision that donors were related to the patients. The presidents of Kyrgyzstan and Turkey subsequently came to an agreement whereby Turkish doctors would help Kyrgyz doctors gain relevant experience and skills through the latter performing kidney transplants in Turkey. In the interim, doctors from Kazakhstan have also pitched in by performing a free operation for a Kyrgyz girl together with Kyrgyz doctors. Though poised to create a centre for liver transplantation, the Kyrgyz Ministry of Health has emphasized the need for continued research on related problems and best practices of other countries.

Kyrgyzstan Measles Outbreak Registers 4,000 Cases

Bishkek is currently dealing with a measles outbreak, with cases also reported in the Chui and Jalal-Abad regions. Up to 85% of all those affected are children under the age of 10. The city of Bishkek's main immunization center stressed in a statement: "The main reason for the increase [...] remains a large number of refusals of routine immunization against measles and rubella among children and adults." According to Kyrgyzstan's Ministry of Health, 40% percent of people who refuse their innoculations say that they doubt the quality of the vaccine, with the rest refusing to immunize their children for religious reasons. This is in spite of the fact that under Kyrgyz law parents can face criminal penalties if they deliberately fail to seek medical help when a child's health is in danger. In response to the measles outbreak, the Ministry of Health mandated a strengthened immunization regime throughout the country, and pushed to vaccinate high-contact citizens. The National Immunization Calendar is also under review: currently the measles vaccine should be administered twice in a person's lifetime -- at one year, and at the age of six -- but Kyrgyz doctors want to add another dose at the age of two. In turn, the World Health Organization (WHO) says that children who have been in contact with a measles patient can be vaccinated as early as six months of age. According to the Ministry of Health's clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of measles, susceptibility to the disease is highest in children aged one to five. An outbreak of measles was observed in the republic last year as well. In September 2023 the Kyrgyz authorities appealed to the WHO for help. As a result, 755,500 doses of measles and rubella vaccine were delivered to Kyrgyzstan, and 750 temporary vaccination points were opened throughout the country. For the calendar year 2023, according to official data, 5,500 people fell ill, and doctors were unable to save nine children.

Kazakhstan Receives $46 Million Grant From World Bank’s Pandemic Fund

An official ceremony was held in Astana with the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan, UN Resident Coordinator in Kazakhstan, Mikael Friberg-Storey, Executive Director of the Pandemic Fund, Priya Basu, representative of the World Health Organization (WHO), Skender Sila, and representatives of diplomatic missions in attandance, according to the press service of the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan. Recently the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan and the WHO signed an agreement for a grant of $46 million. The terms provide Kazakhstan with a country grant in the amount of $19 million, and multi-country grant in the amount of $27 million for three years. Aside from Kazakhstan, 35 countries of the WHO European Region received grant funding for the development of medicines and healthcare systems. In total, according to the World Bank, the Pandemic Control Fund received 179 applications from 133 countries around the world. About 30% of the grant funds went to projects from countries in Africa. The specialized agency said that this money will be used to improve the healthcare system in Kazakhstan, namely the development of epidemiological surveillance, laboratory security, border control, early detection, and response and training of medical personnel. The WHO's country office in Astana will oversee the implementation of the grant in Kazakhstan and provide general technical support to the Ministry of Health. The Pandemic Fund was established in September 2022. It's considered to be the first multilateral financing mechanism to provide long-term, grant-based financial assistance to low- and middle-income countries to improve their preparedness for future pandemics. By the middle of last year, the fund had raised $2 billion in seed capital from 25 nations and philanthropic organizations.