How doctors deceive Minnikhanov but social networks don’t

The Ministry of Tatarstan drew conclusions of the year at a panel session. Residents of Tatarstan started to live longer but they are born less. But there are more complaints about doctors – 879 addresses were written through public inspection, and it's unknown how many complaints were in social networks to the president (these digits aren't considered in official statistics). Rustam Minnikhanov told Adel Vafin off for the big number of complaints and low self-criticism. Doctors who took his blood pressure incorrectly also suffered. Realnoe Vremya tells the details.

''It works incorrectly.'' How Minnikhanov was deceived with pressure results

The panel session of the Ministry of Health started with an exhibition of medical achievements. The head of the online clinic surrounded Rustam Minnikhanov immediately. Why not? The US president did a medical examination, the president of Russia proved he had no health problems by taking a dip and with perfect abs. It's the Tatarstan president's turn. Minnikhanov sat down to take his pressure, the results went to the doctor on the Internet who can be at any point in the world, this time she was in Saint Petersburg.

''What's the weather like there?'' it seemed the pressure didn't concern Minnikhanov, and he started with asking about the weather.

''It's above zero,'' the doctor replied in a smile.

''Come to us, we have much snow,'' Minnikhanov continued flirting with the doctor.

''Oh, thanks,'' the doctor got embarrassed but remembered on time she was called via video conference for another reason: ''125 over 79, within normal limits, Mr Minnikhanov.''

The head of the online clinic surrounded Rustam Minnikhanov immediately

Rustam Minnikhanov became suddenly serious: ''It works incorrectly''

''Mr Minnikhanov, it rose due to excitement, it always happens while being in front of a doctor,'' Minister of Health Adel Vafin started to explain.

''No, no. I don't have pressure above 120. It shows incorrectly,'' Minnikhanov stood up and went to look the exhibition over but didn't take a risk of performing the role of the doctors' guinea pig.

To punish for not attending a doctor and encourage with extra day off for attending

In his report, Adel Vafin told about positive results in health care (Minnikhanov will criticise him for this later). 50 polyclinics were repaired for 4,01 billion rubles, works continue in another 24. The time spent in the queue reduced to 10 minutes thanks to modernisation.

Patients made an appointment with a doctor online 15 million times. But the problem is that 26% of them didn't come on the appointed day. Vafin offered to make amendments to the system of making appointments with a doctor online. The patients who make an appointment and don't come will have limited access to this service.

The eternal problem with interpreting a doctor's writing will be solved. The ministry of health is working on the creation of personal accounts of patients that will receive information about health. ''A patient's results of diagnostic examinations, prescriptions and recommendations of doctors need to be as available as possible,'' Adel Vafin said.

Residents of Tatarstan can also have an extra day off. It turned out the majority doesn't undergo mass screening because they can't leave their work. Vafin asked Chairwoman of the Tatarstan Trade Unions Tatiana Vodopianova and President of the Association of Enterprises and Industrialists Aleksandr Lavrentiev to help, so that directors of enterprises would make amendments to working agreements by considering an extra day off for their employees.

''A patient's results of diagnostic examinations, prescriptions and recommendations of doctors need to be as available as possible,'' Adel Vafin said

''We started to stall in natality''

Now doctors have 13,000 people infected with HIV, 800,000 patients with hypertension, 110,000 with diabetes and 100,000 people with oncology diseases under a regular medical check-up. Men in Tatarstan live less – an average lifespan is 68 years, women live 10 years more. Natality is decreasing – minus 13,9% in comparison with 2016. It became possible to conserve the natural increase thanks to a reduction of mortality.

The reduction of natality concerns Minnikhanov a lot, it's the second thing he mentioned while commenting on Adel Vafin's speech. The first thing was that the minister criticised his job little. ''Of course, there was little criticism of yourself. I will say then the number of complaints we receive through public inspection,'' Minnikhanov announced and switched to demography.

''We've seriously fallen and should understand if it continues so, this story isn't very good. Mortality is decreasing, but we started to stall in natality. We need to seriously analyse the demographic situation,'' Minnikhanov said.

In his opinion, the programme that stimulates natality, which was adopted by the federal centre when low-income families will be encouraged, ''won't work out well, but we'll see''.

''We made a decision on countryside women too. We try to find a possibility to change the situation,'' Minnikhanov mentioned additional payments that women who give birth to one and three kids in the countryside would receive.

Minnikhanov reminded Vafin that the Ministry of Health ranks second in financing level. Despite this, complaints from patients haven't reduced

For Instagram users: Minnikhanov does read comments

Minnikhanov reminded Vafin that the Ministry of Health ranked second in financing level. Despite this, complaints from patients didn't reduce.

''Public inspection has 879 complaints. I also have many addresses concerning complaints about medicine in social networks. You try showing me good establishments, professional doctors, but it should be everywhere – people are the same everywhere. Any person is very sensitive when he has health problems. His attitude to the health system will depend on the way you treat him. Much is done, but it's still not enough. We all support all your offers on better qualification, trips abroad, but you don't work enough. From the minister to heads at the municipal, regional level, you need to look at complaints every month and see what's the reason,'' Minnikhanov said.

''If you will ruin your health, no health care will help you''

Drug provision is the second topic the president touched. Not unified terms of reference to procurement lead to money wasting and corruption. Adel Vafin also told about it and warned chief doctors: ''Directors of medical establishments need to personally supervise the pricing in procurement.''

Minnikhanov also paid attention to mass screening: ''If we don't prevent diseases, it will be 10 times more expensive to treat such people.''

''I think everyone should care about their health. If you will ruin your health, lead an incorrect lifestyle, no health care, nobody will help you,'' he said but ended with wishes addressed to the health minister.

''We can't hide our disadvantages. If a patient evaluates, and you hid it somewhere, it won't do any good. You need to be as transparent as possible. A patient should be satisfied.''

By Daria Turtseva. Photo: prav.tatarstan.ru