Health systems in transition : Uzbekistan

2.9.2 Patient choice
No evidence is available on how much the population is aware of their formal 
right to choose a physician and a health care delivery facility, how these rights 
are exercised in practice and if they have any effect on the quality and efficiency 
of care. The choice of primary health care providers in the public sector (except 
for child and maternal care) is tied to the residence address stamped in the 
passport (“
propiska
”). 
2.9.3 Patient information
A comprehensive and publicly available database or mechanism to inform 
patients of the quality, price, type or other characteristics of the services 
provided by health providers in the public or private sector is currently lacking. 
However, the Ministry of Health web site has recently started publishing prices 
for various services in selected public sector facilities. 
2.9.4 Complaints procedures
In 2003, the Ministry of Health issued a revision of its previous framework 
for dealing with patients’ appeals (Ministry of Health, 2003). According to 
this revision, oral and written appeals have the same legal status. All appeals 
are received and reviewed by the Unit of Correspondence at the Ministry of 
Health. Once referred to the relevant department or agency, the respective head 
is expected to sign the letter of appeal, and indicate who is responsible for 
the review process, and how and when it will be processed. Once the review 
process is completed, the appellant must be informed of the outcomes of the 
process. All agencies are required to have specified times for receiving oral 
appeals, which follow the same pathway as written appeals. In 2013, the web 
site of the Ministry of Health started to accept electronic submissions of patient 
suggestions and complaints.