Public Health in Foreign Periodicals

Abstract

THE MINISTER of Health of the Soviet Union gives an account of the achievements in the field of health during the fifth Five-Year Plan. Definite advances were made in the area of prevention. Numerous hospitals, sanatoria, maternity centers and creches were established. During this period the number of beds was increased by more than 27 per cent. Between 1940 and 1955, 450,000 new beds were added. The increase in the number of beds has been greatest in some of the republics on the periphery of the Soviet Union, and in the large industrial centers where the health services have been improved and modernized. In the course of the past five years (1950-1955) 130,500 students entered the higher medical schools, and 250,000 were admitted to the lower medical schools. The number of physicians doubled between 1940 and 1955. Between 1950 and 1955, the number increased by 21.5 per cent, so that as of that date there was one physician per 700 population. Increases are also reported for other elements in the health situation. Thus, the production of medicaments is reported as having tripled, while hospital equipment is presently available in large quantities. Nonetheless, the organization of health services still has significant deficiencies. Numerous provincial hospitals lack specialists. In many instances physicians and ancillary personnel work under difficult circumstances. Furthermore, an important gap is the missing liaison in various places between research institutes and hospitals. The sixth Five-Year Plan envisages various measures to deal with these problems and to improve the health services still further. One goal is a 28 per cent increase in the number of beds in all health institutions. The number of beds in creches is to be more than tripled by 1960. By comparison with the period of the fifth Five-Year Plan, the number of hospital beds is expected to increase by 300 per cent. The plan envisages more medical specialists and a greater use of antibiotics and atomic energy in medicine.