As part of the instructions of the Head of State, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan is implementing a wide range of measures to improve the quality and accessibility of medical care in rural areas.

Transport Medicine is a rapidly developing field aimed at increasing the accessibility of medical care for residents. To improve access to medical services for people in remote areas, mobile medical complexes (MMCs) are actively operating.

In 2024, 1.2 million residents from 3,072 rural settlements received access to medical consultations and diagnostic procedures through “clinics on wheels.”

Thanks to mobile complexes, 1.2 million consultations with specialized doctors were conducted, along with 656,000 diagnostic procedures and 333,000 laboratory tests.

As a result of these examinations, 95,000 patients with various diseases were identified, of whom 78.3% were adults and 21.7% were children. Based on preventive check-ups, 33,700 rural residents were placed under medical supervision.

In 2024, the “Salamatty Kazakhstan” medical train provided services to 104,000 residents across 128 stations, including 21,000 children, representing a 20% increase compared to the previous year.

Medical train specialists provided 240,000 medical services, including 12,500 dental procedures, 25,000 laboratory tests, 8,000 minor surgical operations, and 24,000 instrumental and diagnostic examinations.

During medical check-ups, 5,500 patients with various diseases were identified and provided with the necessary medical assistance.

Modernization of Rural Healthcare

Systematic renewal of medical infrastructure in rural areas continues under the National Project “Modernization of Rural Healthcare.”

In 2024, the construction of 460 medical facilities was completed, and another 195 primary healthcare facilities will be commissioned in 2025.

For the first time, new rural medical clinics and midwifery centers are equipped with day-care inpatient units, physiotherapy rooms for outpatient rehabilitation, and laboratories, allowing residents to undergo medical examinations without leaving their districts.

In telemedicine-equipped offices, rural patients can receive remote consultations from leading doctors in regional and national clinics. Telemedicine services have doubled over the past year.

To ensure rural residents have access to high-tech medical care, in 2025, 32 district hospitals will be modernized. These hospitals will include cardiology centers, trauma departments, intensive care units, and surgical departments, equipped with angiographs, CT scanners, and MRI machines.

These measures will ensure timely emergency medical care for rural populations in cases of heart attacks, strokes, injuries, and other critical conditions, adhering to the “golden hour” principle, which is expected to reduce mortality from these diseases by 20%.

Attracting Medical Personnel to Rural Areas

New incentives have been introduced to attract medical professionals to rural areas. Young doctors specializing in high-demand medical fields who choose to work in rural areas receive additional financial incentives, subsidized housing loans, and opportunities for professional growth.

Currently, 4,148 medical university graduates have been assigned to regional areas, with 1,233 doctors placed in rural settlements.

A total of 544 graduates have received social support. For the first time, 89 rural doctors, including obstetricians-gynecologists, anesthesiologists-resuscitators, and surgeons, have received one-time payments of 100 MZP (8.5 million tenge).

Positive Impact on Public Health

As a result of comprehensive efforts to improve rural healthcare in Kazakhstan, over the past five years:

• Overall morbidity rates have decreased by 12.9%,
• Urban morbidity has declined by 15.1%,
• Rural morbidity has dropped by 9.3%.

Several high-tech healthcare projects focusing on maternal and child health are being scaled up nationwide.

The “One-Day Clinics” project ensures access to innovative prenatal diagnostic methods for pregnant women, enabling timely detection of congenital malformations and chromosomal abnormalities in unborn children. These clinics follow a “one-stop-shop” principle, offering high-quality services and fast, accurate results within a single day.

For the first time in Kazakhstan, the “Fetal Medicine” project has been launched, successfully performing 20 intrauterine surgeries.

These technologies aim to correct and treat early fetal pathologies using minimally invasive procedures. They will be made available to rural residents, helping prevent disabilities among children.

Ensuring equal healthcare access for both rural and urban residents remains a key focus of the national project.

Source: Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan