Medical education state reform in Tajikistan: Between tradition and modernity

After its post-independence economic and social transformation, the healthcare system of Tajikistan has been shifting from a centrally planned, hospital, and specialist-focused model to a primary oriented care delivery system. Since 2010 the government of the Republic of Tajikistan has been implementing the National Health Strategy aimed at improving the population's health. Significantly reformed medical education is a major prerequisite for changing and defining a new landscape of Tajik medicine that could provide the local population with high-quality health care services. The ongoing medical education state reform involves the restructuring of undergraduate, postgraduate education, and continuing professional development programs in compliance with the recommendations of the World Medical Education Federation. This article gives a brief overview of the history and heritage of Persian-Tajik medicine and helps to retrace its evolution throughout the centuries until modern times. The authors describe the current state of the Tajik medical education system as well as the complexities and controversies, milestones, and the primary outcomes of the medical education reform implemented as part of the National Health Strategy.