Uzbek President Visits Modern Medical Facilities in Samarkand

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev visited Samarkand to review the operations of local branches of the Digital Healthcare Center and the Republican Specialized Scientific-Practical Medical Center of Cardiology, highlighting progress in the digitalization and modernization of the country’s healthcare system.

Over the past year, Uzbekistan’s digital healthcare sector has reached a fundamentally new level. A dedicated Digital Healthcare Center was established within the Ministry of Health to coordinate systemic development.

During his visit, the president was briefed on the Samarkand branch’s work, including the integration of digital technologies and artificial intelligence for patient data collection, disease monitoring, and pharmaceutical management. Officials also outlined tangible results from these innovations.

A major focus was the unified DMED electronic platform, which now contains medical data on more than 36 million citizens. Digital systems in emergency services have reduced ambulance response times, while the “Electronic Prescription” program has cut unnecessary medication prescriptions by 40%, improving transparency in pharmaceutical distribution.

State medical facilities nationwide have been equipped with modern information and communication technology. More than 3,000 healthcare institutions are connected to local networks, and thousands of new computers have been deployed, significantly upgrading the sector’s technical base.

President Mirziyoyev stressed that digitalization provides the government with comprehensive analytical data, a key tool for prioritizing initiatives, allocating resources efficiently, regulating pharmaceuticals, and combating corruption.

Officials were instructed to continue systematic work in this area, including monitoring patient flows, disease patterns, and treatment quality. Streamlining drug distribution and licensing procedures was also discussed.

Early detection of cardiovascular disease and expanded access to high-tech medical care remain priorities. The Samarkand branch of the Republican Cardiology Center underwent a full modernization, now operating as a 100-bed facility with 262 types of medical equipment.

The renovation, funded with 52 billion soums, included the opening of an intensive care unit, a situational center, and a patient waiting area. A mobile diagnostics system has extended the center’s reach, allowing approximately 7,000 patients to undergo coronary imaging.

The center collaborates closely with Samarkand State Medical University, offering clinical residency programs in cardiac surgery. Following the modernization, the number of cardiovascular surgeries performed annually rose from 383 to 590, significantly expanding the range of high-tech care.

During a presentation of the national program “Fighting Heart Attacks and Strokes,” officials shared data on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, five-year trends in incidence, European-standard national programs, results from pilot projects, and a patient routing system for early detection, prevention, and treatment of heart attacks and strokes.

President Mirziyoyev emphasized that such centers are crucial for improving healthcare quality and public health, noting that Samarkand’s experience should be replicated nationwide. Following the visit, he returned to Tashkent.