Reforming of the healthcare system was stipulated by the Coalition Agreement and should be based on new principles and approaches to managing and financing the medical branch. It was stressed that consolidation of efforts of all branches of state power, as well as international and national experts and scientists, medical community, patients and the entire population of Ukraine is necessary to successfully implement this reform.
Chairperson of the Committee Olha Bohomolets stressed that medical reform should begin with systemic inventorying and passportization of medical institutions of all forms of ownership, as well as those pertaining to different spheres of management. She believes that it will be impossible to secure financial transparency and control over the quality and treatment of our citizens, unless the single medical space and interdepartmental Center for reforms is established in Ukraine.
Results of the pilot project that has been carried out for the past several years in line with the Law of Ukraine “On the procedure of reforming healthcare system in Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk Oblasts and the city of Kyiv”, as well as its positive and negative experience was discussed in the course of the hearings. Committee members determined top priority steps that should be taken in order to settle the issues connected with reforming the healthcare system.
At the first stage of reforming main attention was attached to modernization of primary and emergency medical care.
Patients received a real, legislatively enshrined right to choose and
change primary care clinician.Within the framework of the Law of Ukraine of 05/07/2012 No. 5081-VI “On Emergency Medical Care” perspective plans for functioning and development of emergency medical care (EMC) were elaborated in the regions. They were approved by Oblast, Kyiv and city state administrations and adjusted with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. With a view to fulfill the abovementioned Law, centers for emergency medical care and disaster medicine were established in all regions.
Establishment of a single system allowed unite the separated EMC units into a single structure, while presence of EMC offices as legal persons makes it more flexible in management and allows make a better use of the existing potential.According to recent reports, there are 875 permanent and 267 temporary EMC units in Ukraine.
At the same time, the national project “Timely aid” has not yet been completed.
Rapporteurs attached attention to several unresolved problems:
- lack of financial support to the reform;
- accessibility of primary medical assistance remains unequal;
- insufficient quality of EMC, etc.
Minister of Health of Ukraine Oleksandr Kvitashvili presented the draft National Strategy for the development of a new healthcare system of Ukraine for the period of 2015-2025.
Chairperson of the Committee Olha Bohomolets shared her vision of further steps necessary for reforming healthcare system in Ukraine. She determined 25 main steps of the future reform.
Committee Chairperson called on participants of the hearings to cooperation, and stressed that only by uniting efforts of the authority, medical community, scientists and members of the public it will be possible to establish a human-oriented, qualitative, accessible and personalized healthcare system in Ukraine.