40 vehicles to help children aged 0 to 3 years old were delivered to primary healthcare facilities
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine have donated 40 vehicles to primary healthcare facilities in nine Ukrainian oblasts to improve care for children from birth to three years of age under the Home Visiting Programme.
The new vehicles will deliver home-visiting nurses who visit families with children under the age of three, even in remote communities in Ukraine, including those close to the frontline, as well as in IDP locations in Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, Kirovohrad, Lviv, Poltava, Rivne, Chernihiv, Kyiv oblasts and the city of Kyiv.
“Despite the challenges of war, the health and well-being of children remain a top priority for the Ministry of Health. We are committed to ensuring that every family has access to the health care they need. Our joint programme with UNICEF, which implements a universal and progressive model of home visits to enhance medical and social care for families with children from birth to three years old, has been operating for several years and has already proven its effectiveness. The 40 vehicles delivered by UNICEF today will increase the mobility of home-visiting nurses in nine regions, bringing the service even closer to families with children.”
During home visits, the home-visiting nurse can advise the family and provide support on early childhood development and possible risks of developmental disabilities, breastfeeding, immunization and prevention of infectious diseases, etc.
“Home visiting makes quality primary health care and services more accessible for children during their first 1000 days, the period from conception to two years old that is crucial for a child’s optimal growth and development. Home visiting enables the early detection of health-related problems and risks, such as missed routine immunization doses, disabilities, and developmental difficulties. With early detection, children and their parents and caregivers can get the urgent services and support they need. This helps every child, especially the most vulnerable, get the best start in life.”
“Today’s event reflects the solidarity of Spain with the brave people of Ukraine, who must endure difficult circumstances due to this terrible war. This important initiative will allow children in their early stages of development residing in remote areas, as well as their parents or caregivers, to access routine healthcare services through home visits by qualified nurses. We are honored to be part of this.”
"Care from Birth at Home" is a joint programme of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and UNICEF that aims to implement a universal and progressive model of home visits to improve the provision of medical and social care to families with children aged 0 to 3 years in the primary healthcare system.
Families receive support from healthcare professionals in immunization, breastfeeding, nutrition, sanitation, hygiene, positive parenting, and identification of developmental disabilities. More than 20,000 parents and children aged 0 to 3 have already received such assistance.
The "Care from Birth at Home" programme is being implemented in 12 pilot regions of Ukraine: Volyn, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, Zakarpattia, Kirovohrad, Lviv, Poltava, Chernihiv, Kyiv oblasts, and the city of Kyiv.