On April 05, 2022, a regular meeting of the Public Council of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan was held, where members of the Public Council, heads of interested structural divisions of the MH of the RK, the Single Distributor of SK-Pharmacy LLP, as well as invitees, took part.
The meeting began with a moment of silence, the participants honored the memory of gastroenterologist Yuri Shumkov.
At the meeting, members of the Public Council listened to a report on the activities of the Single Distributor for 2021, and also discussed topical issues of improving the provision of medicines to the population of the republic.
According to paragraph 4 of Article 18 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Public Councils”, hearing a report on the results of the work of a subject of the quasi-public sector is a public control procedure and is a public discussion at a meeting of the Public Council of the results of the activities of subjects of the quasi-public sector.
The timeliness and uninterrupted supply of medicines is an important issue for healthcare systems around the world and it is of particular concern in the context of exceptional situations that lead to a significant increase in demand for certain medicines in the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as geopolitical situations in the world.
In the course of the report, the Chairman of the Board of SK-Pharmacy LLP Ye. Iskaliyev also briefed the members of the Public Council on the measures taken to improve the activities of the Single Distributor. In particular, projects implemented within the framework of the SK-Pharmacy Reboot Program, developed by the company's employees with the participation of experts in the field of medicine supply, logistics and IT technologies.
One of the tasks set for SK-Pharmacy LLP is to support domestic developments and the development of a competitive pharmaceutical industry. As part of the support for domestic pharmaceutical manufacturers, the volume of procurement through Long-term contracts is increasing, and according to forecasts, by 2025 the share of DGP in the procurement of the Single Distributor, taking into account the current DDs, will be about 50% in monetary terms.
A big stimulus for the development of pharmaceutical clusters will be the attraction of large BigPharm 50 players to the industry, the development of domestic R&D centers, as well as the deployment of new production facilities in free economic and industrial zones. The issues of digitalization of the healthcare system, planning and accounting of medicines were also touched upon.
Another area where large-scale measures were taken is to ensure the transparency of the activities of the Single Distributor. In order to improve interaction with civil society and create transparency on socially significant issues of medicine provision, a public Working Group "SK-Pharmacy" was created, which is a platform for expressing the opinion of civil society.
In order to implement the instructions of the Head of State dated February 8, 2022 at an expanded meeting of the Government, it is planned to centralize the procurement of medical equipment on the basis of SK-Pharmacy LLP in two stages.
Consequently, this will ensure transparency in planning the purchase of medical equipment, increase the level of equipment with the necessary medical devices, and reduce its cost by consolidating purchases and unifying terms of reference. The quality of after-sales service and staff training will also improve, and the share of domestic producers in the medical equipment market will increase.
At the meeting, it was noted that in order to provide high-quality treatment of patients and create favorable conditions for equipping medical institutions with modern diagnostic and treatment-and-prophylactic equipment, the Single Distributor is conducting a substantive study of issues such as equipping medical devices, planning, efficiency of using, localization, training of specialists, improvement service and repair.
The health of the nation and the availability of healthcare are the fundamental priorities of our state. As the Chairman of the Board of SK-Pharmacia Ye. Iskaliyev noted, in order to create a modern, competitive, affordable and efficient healthcare system, it is necessary to actively involve all representatives of executive bodies, as well as civil society.
The Head of State has repeatedly noted that in the context of a "hearing state" it is necessary to take into account independent judgments from non-governmental organizations and individual citizens. The priority is “hearing” healthcare, a system that must promptly respond to all requests from citizens, public organizations and patients. This formed the basis and became a key component of the development strategy of the Single Distributor. The task is to respond flexibly to changing market requirements and be patient-oriented.
The Single Distributor is ready for direct dialogue and interaction, and is set for close cooperation and constructive dialogue so that each valuable proposal finds its practical implementation and will be a useful tool for improving the provision of medicines to the population.
Reference: In accordance with the Law "On Public Councils" dated October 28, 2020, a new composition of the Public Council of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan was formed and approved. The composition of the new public council consists of 16 members, these are public figures, representatives of NGOs, Atameken NCE and others. During the period of work, members of the Public Council, within the framework of the implementation of the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On the health of the people and the healthcare system", organized and held public hearings on the issues of healthcare reform.