Press Release, 25.04.2019

A round table discussion on the problems of the Russian health care system was held in the office of the regional branch of the Yabloko party in Chuvashia. Basing on the results of the discussion, representatives of political parties and public associations of Chuvashia adopted a resolution “For Decent Medicine”, which was sent to the President of Russia.

“Attempts to improve the quality of medical services by increasing the intensity of labour of doctors and the system of “penalties” are doomed to failure, because for many years health care workers have been experiencing work load on the upper margin of their physical limit. Receiving beggarly salaries of 8,000 roubles, they are forced to work at 1.5 – 2 shifts and take on the excess load. Consequently, employees are forced to receive a patient within a very short period of time, examine him, give recommendations, prescribe treatment and make paper documentation. All this affects the quality of treatment,” runs the resolution.

The roundtable participants called for increasing of government spending on the health care system.

In addition, following the meeting, the participants adopted another resolution condemning the monopoly on power and proposing to ensure parliamentary multi-party system, free and fair elections, and also exclude political censorship in the media.

In its programme, Yabloko declares the need for an immediate cessation of the policy of disrupting the health care system in the form of justified savings and elimination (“consolidation” or “optimization”) of medical institutions.