Telemedicine in Kazakhstan: Bridging the urban–rural divide in delivering prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of noncommunicable diseases (2018)

Since the inception of a telemedicine network in 2004, Kazakhstan has progressively built a world-class service platform as a key component of the national approach to strengthening health care delivery in rural settings and achieving the country’s goal of universal health coverage. The telemedicine network, which was established to ensure the accessibility of specialized medical care for rural populations, provides a range of tele-consultation services, including some designed specifically to support the diagnosis and treatment of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Through the national telemedicine network, the Government of Kazakhstan is successfully realizing its vision of “an effective and accessible health system that meets the needs of the population”, as embodied in the strategic plan of the Ministry of Health for 2017–2021. It considers that expansion of the telemedicine network will be pivotal to further improving the quality of medical care in rural areas by 2050.