Corporate Fund “University Medical Center” becoming an Academic Medical Center

According to the strategic goal of the Nazarbayev University, UMC is part of the Nazarbayev University Integrated Academic Health System (NU Medicine), the purpose of which is to promote healthcare in Kazakhstan through the integration of clinical, educational and research activities.

In fulfillment of UMC’s Strategic and Operational Plans for 2019-2023, and guided by the recommendations of its strategic partner, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), the transformation of UMC into an Academic Medical Center is underway.

The creation of the Academic Medical Center is intended to make UMC a center of excellence, developing a patient-centered system of care with synergy between research, education, and clinical activities.

 Since 2021, structural integration has been carried out. The Mother and Child Center and the Diagnostic Center merged into a single UMC clinical base that is now divided into a hospital and an outpatient clinic. For the convenience of patients and employees of UMC, a transition was built and put into operation between the buildings of the Centers.

The activities of all clinical divisions of the UMC are based on the principles of the Clinical Academic Department, which combines inpatient and outpatient care by profile. Clinical academic departments operate on the basis of the trinity, performing both innovative clinical tasks, educational programs, and realizing scientific research. The activities of UMC employees are carried out according to unified clinical protocols, standard operating procedures and operational internal regulations.

The mechanism of “dual appointment” of employees of UMC, Nazarbayev University and its subsidiaries (both at the level of management, and in clinical, educational and scientific activities) is also applied to intensify the processes of integration. For example, Nazarbayev University School of Medicine (NUSOM) associate professors are involved in leading positions in pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, clinical laboratory diagnostics and pathology.

Thus, associate professors of NUSOM are involved in leading positions in pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, clinical laboratory diagnostics and pathology.

In total, UMC has 8 clinical academic departments:

1) Department of Pediatrics; director – Dimitri Poddighe (associate professor of NUSOM);

2) Department of Women’s Health; director – Bapayeva G.B., doctor of medical sciences, doctor of the highest category in obstetrics and gynecology (UMC specialist);

3) Department of Laboratory Medicine, Pathology and Genetics; director – Matthew Tanko (associate professor of NUSOM);

4) Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care; director – Ibrayev T.E., doctor of the highest category in the specialty “Anesthesiology and resuscitation”;

5) Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine; director – Dautov T.B., doctor of medical sciences, doctor of the highest category in the specialty “Radiology”;

6) Department of Internal Medicine; director – Nabiyev A.N., candidate of medical sciences, doctor of the highest qualification category in the specialty “Public Health”;

7) Department of Pediatric Surgery; director – D.B. Dzhenalayev, doctor of medical sciences, doctor of the highest category in the specialty “Pediatric surgery”;

8) Department of Surgery (established on March 1, 2022); director – Asabayev Amangeldi Shakirovich, doctor of medical sciences, professor, doctor of the highest category.

The structural functional unit in the CAD is subdivisions called “programs”, created in the areas of clinical activity of the CAD. The program manager directly organizes and implements activities aimed at integrating the clinic, education and science. Accordingly, UMC staff are involved in the clinical training of NUSOM medical students, resident physicians, and collaborative clinical and scientific research.

The UMC Nursing Service has been centralized. Nursing personnel from departments managed by physicians have been separated into an independent service that manages the UMC Clinical Base (inpatient and outpatient clinics).

A multi-level gradation of nursing professionals has been introduced according to the level of competence. Medical functions are gradually delegated to Nursing professionals. On the basis of NUSOM, various capacity-building programs for UMC nursing staff are regularly implemented. For example, a 5-month Professional Development Program (PDP) has been offered since 2016 and an accelerated 2-year Bachelor of Applied Nursing program for UMC nurses since 2017.

UMC acts as a unique platform in the development of the scientific and educational potential of Kazakhstan. Thus, UMC trains students of  NUSOM, residents of NUSOM programs (5 specialties), as well as national residency programs (14 specialties).

In addition, educational programs of advanced training for specialists of regional medical organizations, including nurses, are implemented, in which more than 1,000 specialists are trained annually.  Master classes are held involving leading specialists from foreign universities and clinics.

In general, the creation of an integrated academic healthcare system of Nazarbayev University is aimed at:

training of highly specialized competitive healthcare personnel through the introduction of progressive educational technologies;

effective clinical activity based on international standards of quality and patient safety;

development of research potential in health care. In the future, the transfer of gained experience to other medical organizations in the country will significantly improve the quality of training of medical personnel and increase the competitiveness of medicine in Kazakhstan at the international level.