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medpundit |
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Sunday, December 31, 2006He declared unlawful a host of infectious diseases, including AIDS and cholera. They really were outlawed: In May, the Turkmen Helsinki Initiative reported that an unofficial order from the Turkmen Ministry of Health prohibited healthcare workers from diagnosing diseases such as tuberculosis, measles, dysentery, cholera and hepatitis in order to "assure the international community of the absolute well-being and the complete non-existence of any contagious diseases and problems with medication and treatment in Turkmenistan." The medical profession obeyed, since they don't follow the Hippocratic tradition: Niyazov did away with the Hippocratic Oath and instead required physicians to swear an oath to - who else? - Serder Turkmenbashi [his nickname for himself - "The Great Leader of all Turkmen"-ed.]. Not that the medicals were all that professional to begin with: Foreign grants in the 1990s destined for the ailing health sector were misappropriated. Niyazov himself was looked after by five German doctors. When they advised him to stop smoking, after heart surgery in 1997, he banned tobacco (he continued, however, to advise the nation of the health benefits of opium). Many medical professionals fled abroad as working conditions and lack of basic medical equipment in Turkmenistan became intolerable. Niyazov reacted to the deepening crisis in the health sector by sacking the remaining doctors, replacing them with army conscripts, and subsequently announcing the closure of all medical centres outside the capital. In remote villages anaemia, malnutrition and respiratory diseases are now widespread, and there are sporadic outbreaks of bubonic plague. He did, however, set an example for Western governments in their approach to tobacco use. posted by Sydney on 12/31/2006 03:43:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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