Serving People, Improving Health Project: 1,000 medical interventions performed in new cardiovascular center in Rivne

The first Cardiovascular Center in Rivne oblast opened in February 2018. The healthcare specialists of the Cardiovascular Center of the Rivne Region Clinical Hospital (RRCH) have performed about 1,000 medical interventions over the past nine months. The center was opened and provided with all necessary equipment, medicines, and supplies under the ‘Increase the effectiveness of treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases in Rivne region for the period of 2015-2020’ subproject of the Serving People, Improving Health joint project of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine with the World Bank.

Before the opening of the Cardiovascular center in Rivne, local physicians had to refer their patients to specialists from other regions and Kyiv because there were no necessary facilities, equipment, medicines, and supplies to provide quality care in a timely manner in local hospitals. The opening of the cardiovascular center in the Rivne Region Clinical Hospital (RRCH) has significantly improved the situation – local health professionals can now provide high-quality care to their patients on a 24/7/365 basis. This is especially important in emergency cases when patients require immediate medical attention and treatment.

"We have been able to significantly reduce the AMI mortality rates. Timely diagnosis and treatment are critical factors in the heart attack mortality rates. The equipment procured under the joint project of the World Bank and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine allows our doctors to provide appropriate care in a prompt manner. In the first nine months since the opening of this center, the doctors from the Rivne Region Clinical Hospital have been using modern angiography equipment to perform about 1,000 interventions, including 387 stent placements, 207 of which were coronary artery stent placements in patients with acute coronary syndromes," commented Larysa Chernachuk, Head of Interventional Radiology Department, Rivne Region Clinical Hospital.

The subproject is funded under the Agreement between the World Bank and the Government of Ukraine. Therefore, about UAH 2.7 million were allocated for the Cardiovascular Center development from the Rivne oblast regional budget, and the modern angiography complex was purchased for the allocated Project's funds – over UAH 20 million (or USD 720,000). In addition, the Cardiovascular Center was provided with all necessary medical supplies for emergency units, including almost 700 stents.

Today, cardiovascular patients in Rivne oblast have access to high-quality care and to modern life-saving technologies. All equipment and materials procured under the Project are used to provide free care to patients.