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During the videoconference, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu also reported on the construction of a medical centre in Kyzyl.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues,

Today, we will focus specifically on opening the new facilities. Also today, September 15, we are marking the 98^th anniversary of the sanitary and epidemiological service in our country.

Created back in 1922, it immediately became an important component of the country's healthcare system, ensured the continuity of its development and its historical traditions. We are rightfully proud of such names as Erisman, Semashko and Sysin, and many other researchers and doctors who stood at the origins of our sanitary and epidemiological school. We talked about some of them not so long ago.

I would like to congratulate the service veterans. Special thanks go to those who ensured the epidemiological security of the front and home front during the Great Patriotic War.

Today, thousands of specialists are working in this important sphere, including doctors, epidemiologists, microbiologists and hygienists. Largely thanks to your work, friends, we are effectively countering the spread of the coronavirus infection.

Thus, Russia ranks 40^th worldwide in terms of the number of cases per 100,000 people and 100^th in terms of mortality associated with this dangerous infection. Also, our country is the world’s leader in the number of tests per 100,000.

Such comprehensive efforts allow us to detect the disease at early stages, ensure stable epidemiological situation and to provide effective treatment, thus protecting the lives and health of millions of people.

I want to thank you for your dedicated work. Friends, I wish you every success in your work and, of course, good health and happiness in your personal lives.

I would like to return to where I started. It is symbolic that we are opening two multi-purpose medical centres on this particular day. The centres will be operating in the Pskov Region. One is located in Pskov and can accommodate 200 patients. The other is located in Velikiye Luki and has 100 hospital beds.

Both were built very quickly, within two and a half months, thanks to the Defence Ministry’s efforts. What is particularly important is that these two projects are very high quality. It should be noted that lately, the Defence Ministry has been known for its signature high-quality projects and its experts have proven that they always keep the bar high.

I would like to thank the Ministry leadership, civilian specialists and military construction personnel for their contribution to these facilities.

Also, I would like to single out the responsible and enthusiastic work of regional officials, including when it came to allocating land plots and building the utilities infrastructure for these medical centres. I hope that very soon, these hospitals will be ready to accept patients and provide qualified medical assistance.

Another medical centre, in the Republic of Tyva, is scheduled to be completed in late September. To my knowledge, the work is going according to schedule. I hope the schedule will be observed until the end. I would like to hear more details on the progress today.

Besides the hospitals in the Pskov Region, the Defence Ministry has built 21 specialised medical centres all over the country. They are fully equipped with necessary technology and stocked with medications in order to provide efficient and prompt medical treatment, including for the coronavirus.

The purpose of the new medical centres is to ensure there is an additional reserve of hospital beds to cover possible increases in infectious disease rates. In general, they will contribute to a higher capacity of the national healthcare system – especially when it comes to medical facilities in the regions – and increase the accessibility of medical assistance.

I would like to hear a report on the operation of the facilities that have already opened, including a report on staffing and medication supplies.

I would like to finish my opening remarks by saying thank you, once again, to everybody involved in the construction of these medical centres. I wish all the best to you and everybody who will be working at these facilities, doctors, nurses and all medical workers.

Now let’s begin this pleasant event. I would like to pass the floor to Mr Shoigu. Go ahead, please.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu: Thank you.

Mr President, colleagues,

According to your instruction, Mr President, the Defence Ministry has finished the construction of the multi-purpose medical centres – for 200 hospital beds in Pskov and for 100 beds in Velikiye Luki. We are handing them over to the regional authorities today.

The centres are fully ready to provide advanced medical assistance. The total area of the new buildings and structures exceeds 17,000 sq m. Medical workers for these facilities are being trained at the Kirov Military Medicine Academy.

A multi-purpose medical centre in Severomorsk, for 100 beds, is currently under construction. There will be a specialised radiology unit. This is our first project of this kind. We are also finishing the construction of a medical centre in Kyzyl, for 200 hospital beds. After that, we will start the second stage of construction of a multi-purpose outpatient clinic in Tyva. It will be able to receive 300 patients every day.

This concludes my report.

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