Lukashenko demands to improve quality, accessibility of medical care in rural communities

MINSK, 23 May (BelTA) – It is important to improve the quality and accessibility of medical care in rural communities, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a meeting to discuss the most pressing healthcare issues in the country on 23 May, BelTA has learned.

The head of state outlined the accessibility and quality of medical care in rural communities as a pressing problem. "I will keep this issue under tight control! Remember this. First of all, this is the job of governors. I will make sure you put things in order there!" the Belarusian leader stressed.

Separately, the president touched upon the optimization of rural healthcare clinics. Aleksandr Lukashenko demanded to approach the issue carefully, deliberately, proceeding primarily from the interests of people and expediency. "No one is against optimization," the head of state said. "But you must bring healthcare on wheels [mobile medical complexes] with which you want to replace rural healthcare clinics first and then close rural healthcare clinics." As for the argument about saving financial resources by optimizing rural healthcare clinics, the president noted that their maintenance are not so expensive, since the staff there is quite small," Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

In Russia, the president said, they closed such medical institutions and then realized the fallacy of such decision and are now trying to bring everything back. Optimization should be well thought out: "They closed them and now they are trying to heroically return them back. What are we doing? Please sort things out... People live there," Aleksandr Lukashenko noted.