How does Nornickel improve access to healthcare?

The COVID-19 pandemic remained the biggest challenge facing the healthcare system for a while. Nornickel did not stand aside and participated in COVID-19 prevention and treatment. What are your priorities now that the virus has been tamed?

First of all, the development of our own corporate healthcare service. Paid healthcare is not widely available in communities located near our main production sites. That’s why we are planning to set up a network of our own healthcare centers with a wide range of services, qualified personnel and high-tech medical equipment.

Secondly, the upgrade of all occupational medicine facilities in accordance with modern standards. We have already upgraded the medical stations of the Polar Division and Kola Division, and opened a new first-aid station at the Norilsk Supply Complex.

The use of information technology is an important driver for improving healthcare network performance.

Furthermore, it is ongoing health and disease control. If new infectious diseases emerge, we develop methods to counter their spread. As for COVID-19, we are monitoring disease statistics and testing reagents to detect various viral variants. If necessary, we inform our colleagues and issue recommendations.

Recently, Monchegorsk received an MRI machine. How often is it used? What other modern diagnostic techniques are available to residents of Monchegorsk?

Monchegorsk, with a population of about 30 thousand people, received its first MRI machine for contrast-enhanced and non-contrast-enhanced MRIs. The machine is used a lot.

The Center in Monchegorsk was the first to provide care to patients under the state guarantee program, in addition to those with voluntary health insurance plans. Our services are available to company employees, and to local residents. Of course, quota allocation and scheduling processes are not easy, but we expect things to stabilize by the end of the year, so appointment scheduling will become more convenient.

The Center has also obtained licenses which allow it to provide services in other fields of medicine: internal medicine, neurology, and ultrasound. We will soon begin to provide these services — under voluntary health insurance plans for the time being.

We are planning to open a Nornickel corporate healthcare center next to the MRI center.

We are seeing the rise of telemedicine. Do you have experience with it?

We are implementing a large-scale Digital Medicine program for continuous employee health monitoring and control. IT solutions are the circulatory system of our medical program. To build an effective disease prevention system, you need to receive and analyze reliable information in a fast and efficient manner.

We are widely using telemedicine for doctor-doctor communication to organize training sessions and conferences, and to improve our qualifications in close cooperation with other regions.

Due to a number of legal restrictions, remote patient–doctor services are not currently on our agenda. For now, our goal is to bring new medical professionals to the regions. If our employees or their family members need online consultations, we will do our best to make them available to them.


Recently, the network of Nornickel corporate healthcare centers was expanded to include a division in Dudinka — a new clinic that provides primary healthcare services. Could you tell us about it?

The Dudinka Center opened its doors to patients on 20 July 2023. With a staff of 22 physicians, it provides medical services under voluntary health insurance plans.

Norilsk-based specialty physicians come to the Center several times a week in order to provide specialized consultations. These are reputed doctors. Residents of Dudinka can check a doctor’s background and credentials before the appointment.

After several months, we will look at the results and hire more full-time physicians, adjust the visiting frequency and schedule for specialty physicians, and license additional types of medical activities.

Modern medical devices require the skills of highly trained medical professionals. Tell us about the training process. How do you attract highly qualified medical professionals to the regions?

The Center reached an agreement with the Ministries of Health of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Murmansk Region that will bring new medical professionals to our facilities in the regions within the framework of the corporate healthcare development program. This will improve access to healthcare.

We are trying to build effective communication with municipal healthcare institutions. For example, some physicians who work at our medical center in Norilsk also hold part-time jobs in state-owned clinics. Understaffing is the plight of the healthcare system.

We hunt for doctors on job sites or by word of mouth, we get in touch with universities and participants in residency programs. Sometimes, we use recruitment agencies.

We want to make the medical profession more inclusive and appealing to young people. Our medical community includes health bloggers and those who are making their way in the public sphere. We are planning to take part in public events, hold open days, and answer residents’ questions. Attracting medical professionals to the regions is an ongoing task, and one of the most important goals.

We firmly believe in continuous medical education. We regularly purchase new equipment to improve the quality of healthcare services.

An important stage in implementing medical devices is training the personnel to use them. For example, before the MRI center was opened, its personnel spent a month learning how to operate the machine, about its features, patient positioning and comfort during MRI. We have created an internal schedule for sharing best practices and presentation of reports on current clinical issues.

Our medical professionals are happy to share their expertise and learn from peers in other regions.