OREANDA-NEWS. September 05, 2011. Deputy Minister of Health and Social Development Anna Smirnova has held a meeting with Vesa Korpelainen, executive director of the National Health Center of North Karelia (Finland) and Tiina Vlasoff, coordinator of programs and projects of cross-border cooperation. Karelian party at the meeting was presented by Andrey Mikhailov, Head of the Medical Relief Department, Irina Zdorova, head of the health center of the Petrozavodsk city polyclinic N4, experts of the ministry.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development of Karelia, the National Institute of Health and Social Well-Being of Finland and the National Health Center of North Karelia cooperate within the Protocol of intent on cooperation for 2011-2015 within which scope it is planned to conduct research, educational activity and take practical measures concerning health promotion. Last year the Finnish colleagues have got acquainted with the activity of health centers of Petrozavodsk and coincided in the opinion that Karelia's and Finland's common ideas may form a basis for development of joint projects.

During the meeting in the ministry it was mentioned that such noninfectious diseases as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, adiposity, respiratory diseases cause 85% of deaths in the Russian Federation as a whole and in Karelia in particular. Major factors which influence development of these diseases are high blood pressure, smoking, high blood cholesterol, sedentary lifestyle, imbalanced nutrition.

Special attention in the republic is paid to development of preventive medicine. The system of medical inspections and prophylactic medical examinations of the population provides revealing the risk factors leading to development of noninfectious diseases. Work on perfection of profile schools for patients proceeds on the basis of institutions of public health services.

Prevention and education, health risk checkup of able-bodied persons and development of individual recommendations concerning living a healthy lifestyle in Petrozavodsk are conducted by three health centers. In their activity they face a number of problems which solution may be promoted through cooperation with Finnish partners within the scope of cross-border cooperation. During the meeting in the ministry on August, 29 prospects of such cooperation focused on development of health centers of in the republic, broad reach of the population for preventive control, increase of awareness of the population concerning risk factors, increase in the number of people living a healthy lifestyle, advancing the competence of health care professionals were discussed.

Having discussed mutual offers, the parties have expressed readiness to continue cooperation.