Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Today in Tashkent a presentation of the results of a large-scale study STADA Health Report 2023 took place. For the first time in 10 years, Uzbekistan became a participant along with 14 European countries and Kazakhstan, whose data has been included in the report since 2022. The Health Report, which has been prepared by the pharmaceutical company STADA for more than ten years, is the most authoritative study on health issues in Europe.

In 2023, STADA conducted an international public opinion survey on health issues with the involvement of the research company Human8. And in the Republic of Uzbekistan, the company’s partner in the study was the RCIOM “Ijtimoiy Fikr”, which received data through a telephone survey. About 2,000 people were surveyed in each country. In total there were 32,013 respondents aged from 18 to 99 years.

The 2023 Health Report covers key healthcare topics such as attitudes towards chronic diseases, psychological health, the consequences of war and crisis, general well-being and disease prevention, and satisfaction with healthcare services.

Presenting the report in Tashkent, Arminas Macevichus, Vice President of STADA in Eurasia region, noted: “We are glad that this year the Health Report covered the Republic of Uzbekistan, as it provides the most up-to-date information about what Uzbeks think about their health, what health issues concern them most, what they expect from their Ministry of Health, what they would like to change and improve, and how well the trends in the development of health care and medicine in the country correspond to international ones. The STADA Health Report 2023 provides data that provides insight into human behavior, pharmaceutical and health literacy, and healthcare trends. For STADA itself, the data obtained helps us to better meet the expectations of patients and healthcare professionals, and therefore fully pursue our mission of caring for people’s health as a reliable partner.”

Here are some data from the STADA Health Report 2023 study:

“In recent years, it has become more obvious than ever how vulnerable our health is. People took note of this fact and began to take care of their well-being again. Thus, 24% of surveyed residents of Uzbekistan began to visit doctors more often, 22% say that they underwent more preventive medical examinations, and 21% of respondents began to eat healthier food.

- Taking vitamins was noted by 14% of respondents. 12% of respondents began to buy more medicines. 14% of respondents devoted time to sports and health programs. For comparison, in Kazakhstan, taking vitamins tops the list: – 37% of respondents have increased their vitamin intake over the past 12 months. One in four Kazakhstanis (26%) say they have begun to eat healthier.

- Over the past 12 months, residents of Uzbekistan have begun to undergo preventive medical examinations more often, which is a major factor in maintaining good health and identifying diseases in the early stages in order to increase the chances of effective treatment. This was stated by 22% of Uzbeks (17% of Europeans, 19% of Kazakhs).

- 38% of respondents in Uzbekistan noted that they undergo all medical preventive examinations, and 37% undergo some of them. The share of respondents who noted that they do not undergo any examinations was 25% (44% of Europeans, 57% of Kazakhstanis).

- The most popular screening procedure is a therapeutic examination - 58% of Uzbek citizens regularly undergo it (on average 55% in Europe, 64% in Kazakhstan). The second place in Uzbekistan is occupied by a general blood test - 45% (in Europe 42%, in the Republic of Kazakhstan also second place with a share of 71%). Dental examinations occupy third place in the list of the most frequently attended medical examinations in Uzbekistan: 28% regularly undergo them (in Europe 61%, in the Republic of Kazakhstan in fourth place with a share of 45%).

- Among Europeans, the greatest concern is cancer. About every second (45%) puts it in first place, and 79% included it in the top 3 diseases that they fear most. In Uzbekistan, 20% of respondents reported cancer. At the same time, Uzbek citizens are more afraid of neurological diseases than the average residents of Europe and Kazakhstan – Parkinson’s disease was noted by 23% of respondents, and dementia by 22%.

- 26% of residents of Uzbekistan said they had reduced spending on medicines, 10% had cut costs on fresh food, and 8% were saving on wellness treatments.

- Uzbekistan is a leader in psychological health - 71% of surveyed residents of the country rate their psychological health as “good” or “very good”, 27% describe it as “satisfactory” and only 2% as “bad”. For comparison, these figures in Kazakhstan are 62, 32 and 6%, respectively, and in Europe – 67, 23 and 10%.

- 57% of residents of Uzbekistan regularly monitor current health topics, while in Europe this figure is slightly higher – 63%.

- Residents of Uzbekistan are still less open to innovations in the field of medicine; only 13% of respondents noted that they make an appointment with a doctor online (43% on average in Europe, 52% in Kazakhstan). Only 8% receive electronic prescriptions, while the European average is 48% (15% in the Republic of Kazakhstan).

Mansur Seitov, head of the express research department of the RCIOM “Ijtimoiy Fikr”: “We conducted the STADA Health Report study for the first time this year in Uzbekistan and it is a great honor for us to become part of the European family that is participating in this study. The study aroused great interest and excitement among all our respondents whom we interviewed in Uzbekistan. They answered all questions with great interest, asking where the collected information would go and how it would be used. And we really hope that this data will really help improve the healthcare system of Uzbekistan and make it more modern, meeting the challenges and requirements of the time.”

In general, the data from the STADA Health Report 2023 demonstrate that Uzbekistan is following similar trends in health care that are characteristic of most European countries. There is also data that shows more optimistic results compared to all-European ones. Residents of Uzbekistan are confident in their knowledge about their own health, are more positive towards the world around them, current economic and geopolitical challenges, are open to new technologies and approaches in diagnosing diseases, trust official medicine and are ready to follow doctors’ recommendations.

While in Europe there continues to be a downward trend in the level of satisfaction with the healthcare system, in Uzbekistan 65% of respondents noted that they were satisfied with the work of the Ministry of Health. The psychological health and quality of sleep of respondents also improves, despite external crises.

The STADA Health Report 2023 contains data that can help public health professionals better understand people’s behavior, their pharmaceutical and health literacy levels, their health needs and concerns, which overall provides an opportunity to improve the health system, make it more responsive and oriented towards the interests of the population. The study also provides journalists with a wealth of information and food for thought when reporting on health topics. For STADA, these studies help us better understand the needs of patients and healthcare workers and fully pursue our mission of caring for people’s health. The company intends to continue this work in subsequent years.