‘Space’ technologies for human health

Further modernisation of healthcare is an important priority of the social policy of Belarus. This was stated by the President during his visit to the Minsk Centre of Surgery, Transplantology and Haematology.

It is the single multidisciplinary scientific medical centre and the cradle of a new branch of Belarusian medicine raised from scratch. It is one of the largest in Eastern Europe. In terms of the number of transplants, Belarus ranks first in the CIS, outpacing the Russian Federation by more than three times, Ukraine by more than eight times, and Kazakhstan by more than ten times. 


Visiting the Minsk Centre of Surgery, Transplantology and Haematology, Aleksandr Lukashenko determined the guidelines for the further development of medicine,

“Modernisation is to be here! We have built the system … It is the main thing. It is also important to maintain the current salary level, COVID has greatly raised salaries in healthcare, and our task is to take hold.” 

Director of the Centre Oleg Rummo spoke in detail about the work of the centre, drawing attention to its uniqueness,

“It is the single multidisciplinary scientific medical centre in Belarus where, along with high technologies, absolutely all areas of modern medicine are being developed: haematology, onco-haematology, bone marrow, and cell transplantation. In addition, all these technologies are installed in usual medical practices.”

Another feature of the Centre is that scientific research in absolutely all transplantology-related areas is conducted here. by now, 188 new methods of treatment and diagnostics have been developed and put into practice. In addition, the highly qualified scientific personnel are trained at the Centre.


In particular, a team of Belarusian specialists once performed the first liver transplant operations for adults and children in Kazakhstan, the first liver transplant surgery in Armenia, and the first kidney transplant operation in Georgia.
The main task of the Centre is to improve transplant care. Due to the epidemiological situation, its volume has slightly decreased. However, regarding the number of operations per 1 million people, Belarus is ahead of Germany, Poland, the Baltic States, Russia, and Kazakhstan.
The Minsk Centre of Surgery, Transplantology and Hematology is also a leader in the export of medical services. The centre made over $10 million last year. Aleksandr Lukashenko appreciated this,

“This is the main indicator of your success. If people from such medically developed countries as Israel and other states came to you, then you have been recognised. 

We have invested much money into transplantology, but I have no regrets. The highest technologies — whether spacecraft that we make, a nuclear power plant, and you in medicine — are always a prospect. This is what we focus on.”
The Head of State particularly asked the highly-qualified specialists, “Do not be greedy and pass on your experience to young people, so that we have more and more of them.”
“I always say: it is important that those people who come after us are better than us. Otherwise, we aren’t worth our salt,” replied Oleg Rummo.
The President also talked to patients. The first point on the route is the department of anaesthesiology and resuscitation. One of the patients underwent a left-sided liver resection, which was caused by an oncological disease. 
Aleksandr Lukashenko visited an anaesthesiology and intensive care unit and a hybrid operating room that combines the functions of computed tomography and angiography. This ‘space operating room’ enables doctors to work effectively, and enjoys the greatest demand in cardiac surgery, oncology, neurology, and transplantology. 
There are also patients in the Minsk Centre of Surgery, Transplantology and Haematology who have been seriously ill with coronavirus. One of them is a resident of Japan, who underwent a liver transplant at the centre, and then was treated for COVID-19. However, the Belarusian Yulia, was infected with the Delta strain during her pregnancy. She spent more than a month in intensive care, unable to move. 
“I wish you to be healthy, do not get sick anymore! And let Japan not get sick too!,” the President said.

Unity is a power

In a conversation with doctors, Aleksandr Lukashenko expressed his conviction that the healthcare system would not have been able to cope alone in the battle against the virus and its numerous strains, “This is the value of the fact that there is unity (and it was) and power, and society, and health care ... The whole country was mobilised.”
The Head of State stressed that everything was done in the country to provide citizens with personal protective equipment and to provide assistance to the population, and doctors, in turn, quickly coped with the new challenge and added,

“It was a very strong special operation in the country in the field of healthcare, it was made in order to rescue people... We walked through it with dignity. I swear to you. You see, now everyone is using our experience.”

One of the questions to the Head of State concerned the situation in the country’s monetary and financial market, which these days is reacting to external factors. Aleksandr Lukashenko assured, “We have enough foreign cash currency.”


The Head of State also clarified that during the pandemic, the United States turned on the printing press, so today the dollar is ‘covered by huge inflation’. Hence the following warning, “If you want a dollar, please go ahead. But keep in mind: you will lose more than on the Belarusian rouble. But this is everyone’s personal business... Inflation mainly comes to us from the outside, because money has depreciated there, production has not yet recovered there. Rising prices for oil, metals, etc. Prices have risen two or three times... This is a very delicate topic. I understand it hits people, but we don’t live in an isolated world. And you know, even America, which seems to be self-sufficient, has almost the same inflation as ours.”

The main problem of Ukraine

The President expressed his opinion on why Ukraine has its current problems,

“As for the events taking place in our native Ukraine… Well, the people have chosen such leadership. The reason for everything that is happening there is the leadership of Ukraine.”

At the same time, the Head of State noted that the destructive processes evolving on the territory of the southern neighbour have another basis — nationalism and not the best forms of its manifestations, “One of the reasons for the conflict in Ukraine is that people were banned from speaking the language they wanted. We have chosen a different path. You are welcome to speak any language. Do not forget the Belarusian language since this is what makes us different from other countries. However, it has happened that we are speaking mostly Russian… The time will come, and we will speak Belarusian — but it is no need to press people. We have moved away from that. If we followed the same path, then it would have been worse in our country than in Ukraine.”

Based on materials of sb.by and belta.by
Photos by BELTA