Values in Care
    Working evidence register. Some national estimates are dated, modeled or secondary. Every figure shows its evidence type, data year and last-checked date.
    Research candidate · Western Pacific

    Mongolia

    A low-density, resource-limited country often cited for building a national palliative care programme through the WHO public health model, which tests how far care can reach beyond the capital.

    Compare with other countries

    7 domains reviewed · 7 high-confidence · 4 dated estimates · 9 material gaps

    WHO region: Western Pacific. World Bank income group: Income group not yet retrieved.

    Domains reviewed
    7 of 9
    Hospice: 2 of 4
    Backed by a primary document
    0 of 9
    Open questions
    13
    Sources behind this dossier
    4
    Newest source 2020Thin evidence
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    At a glance

    Lessons from Mongolia

    • Mongolia changed the law, the prescribing rules, drug supply and the undergraduate curriculum as one package before scaling services. A training credential works best as one part of such a package, not on its own.93,94
    • A thin, wide network of a few beds in every province reached further than concentrating capacity in the capital. Provincial centres are still towns, so matching rural reach elsewhere needs a tier below the district.94
    • Writing palliative care into the health insurance law gave it a standing payment channel from the start.94

    Palliative care

    01 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    Is morphine available in Mongolia?

    Opioid supply. Is a therapeutic opioid physically available in the wards that need it? Every country on this question

    Generic low-cost opioids were made available early in the programme. A domestic manufacturer now produces morphine and other opioids, and essential palliative care drugs have been available nationally since 2015.93,94

    National evidenceNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    What is national consumption on a morphine-equivalent basis, and how much morphine is produced domestically?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    02 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    How does Mongolia regulate opioids for pain?

    Narcotics regulation. What licensing regime governs stocking and dispensing, and when did it last change? Every country on this question

    Prescription regulations were changed to allow opioid use according to good medical practice. Palliative care is written into the Health Law, the Health Insurance Law and the Social Welfare Law, with national standards and pain guidelines.93,94

    National evidenceNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    Which instrument changed the prescription rules, and in what year?

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    03 · Open · Evidence adequacy: None

    Who can prescribe morphine in Mongolia?

    Prescriber authority. Who is legally allowed to prescribe, and can that group be widened? Every country on this question

    Open question

    Which cadres may prescribe oral morphine, and does authority reach rural primary care workers?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    04 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.68)

    How does palliative care reach patients in Mongolia?

    Service delivery. Through what structure does care actually reach a patient at home? Every country on this question

    • 36 unitsSOURCE-CHECKED · 2017 DATA

      Palliative care units nationally, Mongolia, 201794

      Last checked 2026-09-24.

      190 beds in total, stated against a population of three million.

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    • 190 bedsSOURCE-CHECKED · 2017 DATA

      Palliative care beds nationally, Mongolia, 201794

      Last checked 2026-09-24.

      Cite this figure:
    • 21 provinces of 21SOURCE-CHECKED · 2017 DATA

      Provinces with palliative beds, Mongolia, 201794

      Last checked 2026-09-24.

      Four to five beds in each province and in each of the nine capital districts.

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    • 50 bedsSOURCE-CHECKED · 2017 DATA

      Hospice beds in six Ulaanbaatar hospice units, Mongolia, 201794

      Last checked 2026-09-24.

      Cite this figure:

    Care runs through hospital-based units: hospice units in the capital plus a small palliative bed allocation in every capital district and every province. A paediatric inpatient unit opened in 2014.94

    National evidenceNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    Is there a tier below the provincial centres, such as home teams reaching herding communities?

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    05 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    Who pays for palliative care in Mongolia?

    Financing. Who pays for the drug, the visit and the workforce? Every country on this question

    Palliative care is named in the Health Insurance Law, which makes national insurance a formal payment channel.94

    National evidenceNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    What does insurance pay for: drugs, inpatient days, home visits?

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    06 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    How are palliative care clinicians trained in Mongolia?

    Training and recognition. What credential exists, who awards it, and does anyone recognize it? Every country on this question

    Palliative care is in the undergraduate curricula for doctors, nurses and social workers and in postgraduate training at all medical universities.93,94

    National evidenceNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    When was palliative medicine recognised as a specialty, and how many hold it?

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    07 · Open · Evidence adequacy: None

    How does Mongolia prevent opioid misuse without blocking pain relief?

    Opioid safeguards. How are misuse and diversion controlled, and are treatment and naloxone available, without blocking pain relief? Every country on this question

    Open question

    What controls on opioid prescribing and dispensing apply in Mongolia, and are opioid agonist treatment and naloxone available?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    08 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    What psychological and bereavement support is there in Mongolia?

    Psychosocial and bereavement. What psychological, social and grief support reaches patients and family caregivers? Every country on this question

    Among 141 nurses at the National Cancer Center, psychosocial and spiritual care was the lowest-scoring area of palliative care knowledge, and nurses reported low self-efficacy in communicating with dying patients and their families.663

    Single-site evidenceNewest source 2020 · dated
    Open question

    Do Mongolian hospice units have social workers or psychologists, and is bereavement support offered to families?

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    09 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    How do children get palliative care in Mongolia?

    Children's palliative care. How do children with life-limiting conditions get palliative care and the medicines they need? Every country on this question

    A five-bed pediatric palliative inpatient unit opened in 2014. Mongolia was one of 11 countries in a 2019 survey of physicians treating children with cancer, where 64% across the region said palliative consultation typically starts only when curative options run out.94,664

    National evidenceNewest source 2020 · dated
    Open question

    How many children does the pediatric unit serve each year, and are child-appropriate opioid formulations available outside Ulaanbaatar?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    Hospice

    Hospice care in Mongolia

    How the hospice model works here, who can use it, who pays and who it reaches. Covered 2 of 4.

    01 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    What does hospice care look like in Mongolia?

    Hospice model. What does hospice mean here, who runs it, and in what settings? Every country on this question

    Mongolia began palliative care development in 2000, and hospice units sit within a national network of palliative beds. Six hospice units in Ulaanbaatar hold 50 beds, alongside palliative beds in districts and provinces and a 5-bed pediatric inpatient unit opened in 2014.94

    National evidenceNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    Who operates the six Ulaanbaatar hospice units (state, NGO or faith-based), and is there home hospice?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    02 · Open · Evidence adequacy: None

    Who can get hospice care in Mongolia?

    Hospice eligibility. Who can enter hospice, on what criteria, and how late do patients arrive? Every country on this question

    Open question

    What admission criteria do Mongolian hospice units use, and do non-cancer patients enter them?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    03 · Open · Evidence adequacy: None

    Who pays for hospice care in Mongolia?

    Hospice funding. Who pays for hospice care: a public benefit, insurance, charity or families? Every country on this question

    Open question

    Palliative care is named in Mongolia's Health Insurance Law; how much of hospice unit care does health insurance cover, and what do families pay?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed
    04 · Sourced · secondary only · Evidence adequacy: Moderate (0.72)

    How many people reach hospice in Mongolia?

    Hospice reach. How many dying people use hospice, and who is left out? Every country on this question

    Mongolia reported 190 palliative and hospice beds for three million people, including 50 hospice beds in Ulaanbaatar. Figures come from a program self-review by national palliative care leaders.94

    National evidenceSelf-reportedNewest source 2018 · dated
    Open question

    What share of deaths in Mongolia, and in rural provinces specifically, pass through hospice or palliative beds?

    Help answer it:Search PubMed

    Sources cited here

    • 93Davaasuren O, Stjernsward J, Callaway M, Tsetsegdary G, Hagan R, Govind S, et al.

      Mongolia: establishing a national palliative care program. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management 2007;33(5):568-572. DOI 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2007.02.017. Abstract read. Generic low-cost opioids made available, prescription regulations changed to allow opioid use according to good medical practice, and palliative care education added to undergraduate curricula for doctors, nurses and social workers, with postgraduate training begun.

    • 94Davaasuren O, Ferris FD.

      Palliative care development in Mongolia. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management 2018;55(2S):S59-S66. DOI 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2017.02.022. Abstract read. Development began in 2000 with a national society and a palliative care department; palliative care written into the Health Law, Health Insurance Law and Social Welfare Law and national cancer and NCD programmes; hospice units and beds in the capital and in every district and province; a domestic manufacturer producing morphine and other opioids; essential palliative drugs available since 2015.

    • 663Kim JS, Kim J, Gelegjamts D

      Knowledge, attitude and self-efficacy towards palliative care among nurses in Mongolia: A cross-sectional descriptive study. PLoS One 2020;15(7):e0236390. Survey of 141 nurses at the National Cancer Center; single-site. Abstract read.

    • 664Ehrlich BS, Movsisyan N, Batmunkh T, et al.

      Barriers to the early integration of palliative care in pediatric oncology in 11 Eurasian countries. Cancer 2020;126(22):4984-4993. ADAPT survey of 424 physicians in 11 Eurasian countries including Mongolia, 2019; results reported regionally, not by country in the text read; led by St Jude. Full text read.