Irkutsk Children's Polyclinic Project Nearly Removed from Plans

Irkutsk almost lost the opportunity to build a new children«s hospital No. 5 due to the stance of the federal Ministry of Health, which has to be persuaded when approving major projects in regional centers. This was stated by Galina Sinkova, deputy head of the regional health department, during parliamentary hearings in the city council on January 28.

According to Sinkova, the main problem in building new medical facilities and reconstructing existing ones is related to the directives of the federal government, which believes that new hospitals should be built primarily in the peripheries of regions, not in their centers.

«It is necessary to exclude the construction of facilities in the capital cities of regions from regional programs in the absence of corresponding decisions by the President of the Russian Federation or the Chairman of the Government. And also [this applies to] measures for conducting major repairs in medical organizations located outside rural support settlements and not serving the corresponding population,» — quoted the deputy minister of health of the Irkutsk Region from a letter by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova, who oversees this sector.

She mentioned Irkutsk Children«s Polyclinic No. 1, which had to be removed from the plans of the regional Ministry of Health for this reason, adding instead a polyclinic in Tulun. This happened on the instruction of Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin as part of the restoration of flooded territories.

According to her, in Irkutsk, the federal Ministry of Health has so far approved the construction of a new building for Children«s Polyclinic No. 5 (currently it is located in adapted premises that were originally built as a cafe).

«The Russian Ministry of Health today does not take our word for it and checks all our information, including the number of attached population, against data from Rosstat and the Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund,» — she stated.

At the same time, the official added that the health department will not be able to develop new projects for reconstruction or construction of medical facilities until the old ones are completed. However, some of them have already lost relevance.

Towards the end of the discussion, deputy and chief physician of Hospital No. 5 Olga Klevtsova took the floor, who supported Sinkova.

«I speak as the head of an institution subordinate to the Ministry of Health: the Ministry of Health, and specifically Galina Mikhailovna, have no interest in slowing down any projects. It is necessary to understand and see how they work, in round-the-clock mode, fending off the Federation and defending some projects, like our »number five«, which they wanted to throw out,» — she stated.

The new medical facility is planned to be built on a land plot on Tereshkova Street, where the Chaika cinema was previously located, which was demolished in the spring of 2022. Initially, it was assumed that the project of the IAPO medical unit would be used, and work would begin in 2022. But later it became known that the medical unit project «does not fit» on the land plot.

Another problem hindering the development of medicine in Irkutsk, Sinkova named the shortage of doctors. In her opinion, graduates of the medical university who remain in the Irkutsk Region prefer to leave the center for other districts because they are offered not only work but also relocation allowances with housing.

«I gave a lecture to the sixth-year students (Sinkova also heads the department of polyclinic therapy and general medical practice at the Irkutsk State Medical University. — Ed.) and gave them a small questionnaire to say what they want to get. First — everyone wrote about salary. I outlined a gradation there: from 60,000 to 80,000 rubles (approximately $600–$800 at current rates), from 80,000 to 100,000 rubles (approximately $800–$1,000), from 100,000 to 120,000 rubles (approximately $1,000–$1,200), more than 120,000 rubles (over $1,200 at current rates), and other amounts. Many write: »More than 120,000,« and some — and other amounts above.

Second — is housing. We were recently in Cheremkhovo. Vadim Alexandrovich (Semenov, mayor of Cheremkhovo. — Ed.) immediately [says]: «Here is a comfortable apartment for you.» Especially if they come with families. In Irkutsk, needless to say, housing costs are very high. Out-of-town guys have nowhere to live here. If the issue of some social housing were resolved, that is, you come to work in the polyclinic, then you are given an apartment even in a small-family building, even a small apartment with a small kitchen — and people would already go to work in Irkutsk,« — she emotionally noted.

In December 2024, the deputy minister of health already shared concerns about this. At that time, she stated that young specialists literally «ran to the districts.»