International investors are interested in modernization of Ukrainian health facilities

On September 14, the Infrastructure PPPs in Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia Conference in Kyiv brought together experts, business representatives and government officials from different countries to discuss the latest developments in the PPP sector and the PPP opportunities in Ukraine. One of the panel discussions focused on facilities management and PPPs in the healthcare sector. Roman Ilyk, deputy Minister of Health of Ukraine, presented the Ministry’s strategic plans aimed at attracting investment in the Ukrainian healthcare in the context of the ongoing transformation.

The key objectives of this international conference included to facilitate dialogue between the private and public sectors, to introduce the world’s best practices, and to create opportunities for the knowledge and expertise exchange, as well as for a sustainable PPP development and the implementation of different PPP projects in Ukraine.

The participants of the ‘Facilities Management and PPPs in the Healthcare Sector’ panel discussion underlined the importance of the development of PPP projects in healthcare. The Ukrainian medical sector has long needed a complete reboot. However, health facilities could not implement systematic changes independently due to limited financing and state’s resources. PPPs can become a powerful instrument of change, because private investments can supplement limited public sector capacities and raise additional finance in an environment of budgetary restrictions. Therefore, PPPs can enhance the quality, the efficiency and the competitiveness of healthcare services in Ukraine.

"Healthcare reform is very dynamic and provides a powerful impetus for the PPP development. The introduction of the new healthcare financing model, the reorganization of health facilities to independent management and the development of new healthcare quality standards open the door to financial partnerships with the private sector. The Ministry of Health has established a PPP working group, which is already developing practical guidelines for health facilities, the public sector and private investors. By the end of the year, we will collect the necessary data to estimate the demand, to select and to start implementing the three pilot projects. We will provide the long-term technical, expert and communication support for these projects. Our goal is to develop these projects as illustrative examples of PPPs in healthcare," noted Roman Ilyk, deputy Minister of Health of Ukraine.

The national healthcare system transformation has opened up new opportunities for cooperation between the state and the business sector. According to Iryna Kovalenko, Manager at Ernst & Young Legal Services, the two main opportunities included the development of PPPs in the health sector and the introduction of the new healthcare financing model. The state now pays for specific services and the investors are interested in the clearly defined lists of services – the services that are covered by the state and the ones that are not included in the guaranteed benefit package.

The development of PPPs in the Ukrainian healthcare will contribute to ensuring an efficient and rational use of the state’s financial resources, as well as to improving the quality of health care and to gradually increasing the remuneration of health professionals and workers.