Experts

Public health physician, pulmonologist

Aigul Seitkali

Demo profile. A fictional specialist created for the website mock-up. The photo shows a stock model, not the person named. Replace with a real expert with written consent before publishing. Tobacco harm reduction: what the data says, not the usual phrasing Almaty Aigul works where clinical practice meets prevention: she advises patients with chronic lung disease and, in parallel, works on risk communication — explaining complex things without scare tactics and without oversimplifying. In her experience, people change behaviour more often when they understand the mechanism than when they are frightened by the consequences. In her Densaulyq Life materials she makes sure every claim about smoking rests on a source, and that wording never turns "lower exposure" into "safe". Those are different things, and the difference matters to a reader making a decision. Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, general medicine, 2008 Residency in pulmonology, 2010 Master's in public health, 2015 Advises patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma Lectures on risk communication for primary care physicians

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Cardiologist

Yerlan Zhumabayev

Demo profile. A fictional specialist created for the website mock-up. The photo shows a stock model, not the person named. Replace with a real expert with written consent before publishing. The heart and everyday habits: what actually changes risk Astana For twelve years Yerlan has worked with patients who have already had a heart attack or a stent. He knows well what a conversation looks like when everything is explained at once: pills, diet, movement, quitting smoking. In his experience, that kind of conversation barely changes behaviour. So he builds a consultation differently — around one step the patient can genuinely take this week. "The hardest part is not prescribing, but agreeing," he says. In his materials for the site he covers the cardiology side: what happens to blood vessels, why exertion in the cold deserves attention, and how smoking is linked to risk. Astana Medical University, general medicine, 2012 Residency in cardiology, 2015 Manages patients after heart attack and stenting Advises on quitting smoking as part of cardiac rehabilitation

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Public health physician, epidemiologist

Dinara Ospanova

Demo profile. A fictional specialist created for the website mock-up. The photo shows a stock model, not the person named. Replace with a real expert with written consent before publishing. The air we breathe: the city, the home, the heating season Almaty Dinara works on something rarely visible in a consulting room: she looks at the health of whole cities. Her job is to compare air monitoring data with clinic visits and explain what those numbers mean for an ordinary person on a particular Tuesday. She insists that smog is neither a verdict nor a reason to seal yourself indoors for the whole winter. It is far more useful to know your district, the rush hours and a few simple rules: when to ventilate, when to move a run indoors, when to wear a respirator. In her Densaulyq Life materials she stays away from apocalyptic framing: her aim is for the reader to leave the article with a plan, not with anxiety. Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, preventive medicine, 2013 Master's in epidemiology, 2016 Works with air quality monitoring data from Kazakh cities Takes part in school programmes on lung disease prevention

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Neurologist, sleep specialist

Assel Nurlanova

Demo profile. A fictional specialist created for the website mock-up. The photo shows a stock model, not the person named. Replace with a real expert with written consent before publishing. Sleep as physiology, not a matter of willpower Almaty Assel sees patients who have lived for years in "sleep whenever it happens" mode. She starts with a simple question: what time do you get up. In her words, it is the morning rise, not the evening effort, that sets the rhythm — and that often comes as news to people used to fighting themselves. She works with cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia and does not promise quick results: change takes weeks, but it holds. In her materials for the site she explains that sleep is physiology, like blood pressure or temperature, and that "pulling yourself together" does not work here. Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, general medicine, 2011 Residency in neurology, 2014 Specialisation in sleep medicine, 2018 Treats patients with insomnia and sleep-disordered breathing Trains physicians in cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia

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Public health physician, researcher

Bekzat Omarov

Demo profile. A fictional specialist created for the website mock-up. The photo shows a stock model, not the person named. Replace with a real expert with written consent before publishing. What is known, what is not — and how to tell them apart Almaty Bekzat is the kind of researcher who reads the papers themselves rather than the press releases: methods, sample sizes, limitations. He is interested not only in what a study showed but in what it did not show — and that difference is almost always lost in retelling. In the editorial team he acts as the brake: if a claim sounds elegant but has no source behind it, it does not go through. He also insists that materials on nicotine and alternative products always keep both sides visible — the exposure data and WHO's position that this does not yet prove lower risk. Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, public health, 2015 Master's in public health, 2018 Researches how people understand numerical risk Reviews tobacco and nicotine materials before publication

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