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Tengrinews.kz — Kazakhstan updated its emergency medical care rules on October 13, 2026. Here is what has already changed for patients and which innovations are still only planned for implementation.
One of the key innovations included in the order is the ability to track the location and movement of an ambulance crew in real time using geolocation services. This was widely reported by the media when the document was published.
“For this purpose, after a crew is assigned, the automated ambulance system will transmit the necessary information to the relevant service,” the order states.
However, as it turns out, online ambulance tracking is not yet available nationwide.
Gulnara Sarsenbayeva, director of the Ministry of Healthcare’s Medical Care Organization Department, told Tengrinews.kz that the provision is not yet operating across the country. A pilot project related to the new feature is currently underway in Aktobe and Shymkent.
“We expect that ambulance movements will be trackable through a taxi-hailing app. When a customer orders a car, they can see exactly where the driver is. A similar principle will apply to ambulance calls: the app will have a section linked to emergency medical services, and the person who called 103 will be able to see where the ambulance is,” she explained.
Sarsenbayeva said the pilot project in the two cities will run until the end of the year. If everything goes according to plan, it will then be expanded to other regions.
She also highlighted an important detail:
“Only first-priority emergency calls will be trackable in the app. The feature will not apply to all categories of calls,” the Ministry of Healthcare representative said.
In Kazakhstan, ambulance calls are divided into four urgency categories. The first includes life-threatening conditions, with an ambulance required to arrive within 10 minutes.
If a person who calls an ambulance does not have the app, they are expected to receive an SMS with a link that will allow them to track the vehicle’s movement.
Why is ambulance tracking being introduced?
Gulnara Sarsenbayeva explained:
“People complain and worry: they call an ambulance and do not know whether it is on the way. They call the dispatcher again and occupy the line. This way, they will be able to see where the ambulance is, and many questions will resolve themselves.”
The procedure for calling an ambulance itself is not changing. Patients still need to call 103, after which a dispatcher determines the level of urgency.
However, the term “fourth urgency category” is being removed from the emergency care rules. This category will now be called an “urgent condition.” The change takes effect on October 13.
The former fourth urgency category includes conditions caused by an acute illness or exacerbation of a chronic condition that do not involve sudden or severe disruption of organ or body system functions and do not pose an immediate or potential threat to the patient’s life or health.
In cities, such calls are handled by mobile teams from outpatient clinics, while in rural areas they are handled by ambulance crews.
In practice, nothing changes for patients apart from the name of the category.
If a person calls 103 and the dispatcher classifies the case as an “urgent condition,” the call is transferred to the nearest outpatient clinic, whose medical team must reach the patient within an hour.
Mobile teams must provide care within the clinic’s service area from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Calls are handled based on the patient’s actual location, regardless of which clinic they are registered with.
The system operated in the same way before October 13.
“Today, around 80 percent of outpatient clinics across the country independently handle urgent-condition calls using mobile teams. We want to bring this figure to 100 percent because 20 percent of medical organizations still transfer these calls to ambulance services,” Gulnara Sarsenbayeva said.
At the same time, ambulance response times remain unchanged:
Another provision taking effect on October 13 requires ambulance crew members to carry body cameras. However, not all medical workers have them yet.
“Body cameras will be purchased using local budget funds. The inclusion of this requirement in the order will make it possible to raise the issue at maslikhat meetings and allocate funding for their purchase,” the official explained.
She said ambulance body cameras have already been purchased in eight regions without waiting for the order to take effect. These are the Almaty, Karaganda, Zhetysu, Kyzylorda, Pavlodar, North Kazakhstan and East Kazakhstan regions, as well as Shymkent.
“We see this as an effective measure to protect medical workers. When an ambulance specialist arriving at a call immediately informs the patient that the interaction is being recorded, it seems to have a disciplining effect, and patients behave more calmly,” Sarsenbayeva said.
In addition, ambulance crews and mobile teams from outpatient clinics must be equipped with radios and mobile cameras. These devices will make it possible to make audio and video recordings during patient care and transportation to hospital.
If medical workers face a threat to their life or health while responding to a call, the case must be handled in the presence of police officers.