LOOKING AT HEALTH CARE
During Soviet rule, health care was free for all. However, some people paid money to receive better treatment. Hospital patients often had to pay for meals and changes of bed linen. There were shortages of basic health care items, such as bandages. Painkillers and other necessary drugs were often unavailable. In rural areas, some hospitals did not have hot water or sewage disposal facilities. The quality of health care declined significantly in the 1970s and 1980s.
Currently, most health care is still free, although private health care services are becoming more common and those who can afford to pay extra receive better care. In addition to hospitals and clinics, holiday homes and sanatoriums provide health care. Special clinics take care of sick children up to the age of 16. Although the government funds some homes for the aged, family members often care for the elderly in their homes.

Although Russian scientists and doctors are highly qualified, they are often paid low wages. Medical facilities and equipment are often in short supply and medical supplies including pharmaceuticals are scarce.
 Did you know?
     
It is customary in Russia to wrap babies up tightly in swaddling clothes for the first few months of life. Some Russians believe that this practice helps to strengthen a baby’s bones. Swaddling is gradually becoming less fashionable.

Circulatory and respiratory diseases and cancer are the leading causes of death. These diseases are caused in part by poor living and working conditions, poor nutrition and smoking. Russian health care workers are particularly concerned about the rise in smoking among women and teenagers. Alcoholism accounts for one-fifth of all deaths. For generations, many Russians have tended to drink large amounts of vodka, known as “the green snake.” In the 1980s the government launched a large-scale program to help people conquer alcoholism.
Many Russians turn to traditional and alternative forms of medicine to cure their ills. Some Russians treat a fever by rubbing vodka on the chest and putting mustard powder in woolen socks, which they wear to bed. They then drink a mixture of milk, honey, baking soda, and vodka just before going to sleep. Headaches are said to be relieved by placing cabbage leaves on the temples and forehead and the back of the neck.