Joint intergovernmental consultations between Ukraine and the Czech Republic: a memorandum of cooperation in the healthcare sector is signed
On July 16, joint intergovernmental consultations between Ukraine and the Czech Republic took place in Prague. The meeting focused on bilateral cooperation, particularly in the healthcare sector. Also, during the meeting, Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko and Deputy Prime Minister of Health of the Czech Republic Vlastimil Válek signed a memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic. The document lays the groundwork for further strengthening cooperation between the countries in the field of health care and public health.
The purpose of the memorandum is to create favorable conditions for cooperation in the field of modernization and development of healthcare systems, as well as Ukraine’s integration into the EU healthcare system. The cooperation also includes support for Ukraine’s healthcare sector to implement projects to build rehabilitation centers, modernize medical infrastructure, and provide healthcare facilities with medical and laboratory equipment.
“Every day, russia bombs and shells Ukrainian cities and medical infrastructure - hospitals, maternity wards, outpatient clinics. The whole world witnessed the terrorist attack on the country’s largest children’s hospital, Okhmatdyt, last week, where more than 600 seriously ill children and about the same number of doctors were treated when a russian missile hit directly. Restoration and modernization of the destroyed medical infrastructure, construction of rehabilitation centers, and provision of medical facilities with the necessary equipment are extremely important for us today. No medical system is able to effectively counteract such challenges on its own. This is only possible with the reliable support of partners. I am grateful that last year the Czech Republic contributed to the restoration of 10 hospitals in Kharkiv and Dnipro oblasts. I hope that our cooperation will only deepen.”
The signed memorandum envisages strengthening cooperation in the following priority areas:
- public health, prevention, modernization and sustainable development of healthcare systems, as well as Ukraine’s integration into the European Union’s healthcare system;
- implementation of projects to build rehabilitation centers, develop and modernize medical infrastructure damaged or destroyed as a result of the full-scale invasion;
- supplying healthcare facilities in Ukraine, including those affected by the military aggression of the russian federation against Ukraine, with medical and laboratory equipment and machinery;
- providing humanitarian aid for the healthcare sector of Ukraine;
- exchange of experience and involvement of technical assistance from the Czech Republic in the provision of rehabilitation and prosthetics services, training of multidisciplinary teams for rehabilitation, treatment and prosthetics;
- treatment and rehabilitation of wounded Ukrainian citizens in Czech medical institutions;
- medical data exchange, telemedicine, artificial intelligence technologies, and cybersecurity;
- opportunities for using artificial intelligence in the field of mental health;
- ·pharmaceuticals.
The signing of the memorandum is an important step towards strengthening medical cooperation between Ukraine and the Czech Republic. It will help to improve the quality of medical services and increase the level of public health in both countries. The cooperation is also aimed at overcoming the negative consequences in the healthcare sector and countering the challenges provoked by russia’s military aggression against Ukraine.