The history of medicine in Turkmenistan is a journey from ancient folk healing traditions and the medical schools of the Great Silk Road to an advanced, high-tech healthcare system recognized internationally. The territory of present-day Turkmenistan has historically been one of the region’s major scientific centers. It was here that prominent scholars and physicians worked and produced fundamental scientific works, including Seyyed Ismail Jurjani, the author of the renowned medical compendium “The Treasure of Khorezmshah.”
Traditional medicine has deep roots. For centuries, the unique medicinal plants of the Kopetdag Mountains and the Garagum Desert were widely used. During the Soviet period, the country succeeded in completely eliminating or bringing dangerous infectious and parasitic diseases under strict control. In 1931, the Turkmen State Medical Institute (now the Myrat Garryyev State Medical University of Turkmenistan) was established in Ashgabat, becoming the cradle of the nation’s medical and scientific personnel. Renowned balneological and climatic health resorts were also developed, including Mollagara, based on its therapeutic mud lake; Archman, utilizing the healing properties of mineral springs; and Bayramaly, specializing in climatotherapy for kidney diseases.
During the years of Turkmenistan’s independence, the country’s healthcare system reached a qualitatively new level. Since 1995, the State Program “Saglyk” ("Health"), developed under the leadership of the National Leader of the Turkmen People, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, has been implemented nationwide. Its implementation has made it possible to achieve a number of key results. The country became the first in the region to introduce universal iodization of edible salt and fortification of flour with iron and folic acid, and it also received WHO certificates recognizing its high immunization coverage, particularly against hepatitis B.
Turkmenistan has established a cluster of high-tech medical centers. A network of specialized medical complexes has been created in Ashgabat and the country’s regions, including the International Cardiology Center, the Maternal and Child Health Center, as well as oncology, ophthalmology, and endocrinology centers.
Nevertheless, today it is perhaps appropriate to remember that those who stood at the origins of Turkmen healthcare and medical science also made their own valuable contribution to the development of national medicine and its present-day achievements. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the moment when the first Turkmen woman among the country’s medical scholars earned the degree of Candidate of Medical Sciences. It happened during the harsh winter of 1946. Those were the first months after the war—hardly a time for scientific pursuits. Destruction was everywhere, and people endured extremely difficult labor. The country survived thanks to the heroic efforts of ordinary citizens who rebuilt cities by hand, yet their hearts were filled with extraordinary optimism and hope for a new life.
It was precisely this hope of returning to her beloved science—medicine—that sustained Niyazgul Kuliyeva throughout the war years. Her dream, however, was not destined to come true in the summer of 1941. Niyazgul was already completing work on her dissertation when the war broke out, and without hesitation she volunteered for the front. Having graduated from the Moscow Medical Institute in 1937, she worked as a physician while pursuing postgraduate studies. No one doubted that Niyazgul would earn the degree of Candidate of Medical Sciences. But the war changed everything.
During the war, Major of the Medical Service Niyazgul Kuliyeva, head of the therapeutic department of one of the military hospitals, saved the lives of hundreds of soldiers and officers. She was the daughter of Ene Kuliyeva, an active participant in the struggle for equal rights for Turkmen women, and Kary-aga, a mechanic at the Gyzylarbat Railway Car Repair Plant.
After being demobilized from the army, N. Kuliyeva returned to Ashgabat and, in December 1946, brilliantly defended her dissertation. Later, she completed her doctoral studies in Kyiv, earned the degree of Doctor of Medical Sciences, and became an Associate Professor at the Turkmen State Medical Institute.
N. Kuliyeva was awarded the titles of Honored Doctor of the Turkmen SSR and Excellent Healthcare Worker of the USSR for her outstanding contributions to medicine. She also held high public offices, serving as a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Turkmen SSR and Deputy Chairperson of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the republic.
Niyazgul Karyyevna Kuliyeva is a legendary figure in the history of medicine and healthcare in Turkmenistan.
