The decline in the availability of medical care for residents of rural areas, small towns and villages after the reforms entails the need to find new ways to optimize the network of medical organizations. One of the main methods for assessing the impact of different types of criteria on the result is an expert study, which allows one to form a common opinion about the object of study and make an informed management decision on a specific issue.

OBJECTIVE

To study the opinion of experts and justify measures to improve the system of providing medical care to the rural population.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Methods of sociological and expert assessments are applied. A questionnaire was developed, which was used to create a database and further statistical processing of the material.

RESULTS

A survey of healthcare workers was conducted to obtain an individual opinion about the place of the central district hospital (CDH) in the system of providing medical care to the population, its optimal structure and necessary directions for development. The results of the study confirmed that the CDH plays an important role in the system of providing primary health care and specialized care to the population. Increased attention to the status of the CDH, its development and equipping with the solution of the issue of the possibility of transferring low-capacity CDHs to budget financing, additional measures of social support for medical workers and social infrastructure development programs in rural areas will have a positive impact on the quality of medical care and will contribute to the retention of medical personnel.

CONCLUSIONS

Against the backdrop of a decline in the rural population, a decrease in the average population of settlements, it is necessary to preserve the central district hospitals, which should take the lead in organizing the provision of medical care to the attached population.