Free medical care: reality IDPs facing

All those who have had health problems know that it is not recommended to be illin Ukraine. The situation with medical treatment of IDPs aggravates the problem of “free” medical service in the country. An IDP told us about the the situation she has occured in to the journalists of "Donetsk Dialogue" , a program of Donbas Public TV. The journalists also tried to clarify the situation with medical care on occupied territories where Ukrainian medical service is not available.

The Ukrainian state spends considerable sums of money on medicine. In spite of that, current medical service is like a bottomless hole: billions are invested, however, there are neither medicines even for the first aid, nor guarantee of qualitaty health care.

Anastasiya came to the capital from Donetsk. She rented some accomodation and found a job. Everything seemed to be more or less OK, but one day she felt bad. She consulted a doctor and had a medical check-up, however, the doctors did not find anything.

“I understood that I was ill: I felt bad, I had temperature, I had backache. I know that I have problems with kidneys as I had been tested in Donetsk. Then the doctors said that the problem was not very serious. But that time the pain prevented me from working”, said Anastasiya.“I decided to be operated on. For that I had to find 10,000 Hryvnyas.”

Where could she get even this not so considerable sum of money without outside help in a new place? Besides, when the state gives you as an IDP 400 Hryvnyas of monetary support a month, then 10 thousand seems to be a huge sum. The conclusion is: it is not recommended for IDPs to get ill, leaving alone hopes for free medicine.    

Lawyers: State hospitals conceal their income

According to lawyer Tetyana Popova, in the majority of cases, Ukrainians get medical service which differs considerably from the one guaranteed by Ukrainian legislation.

“Health care is guaranteed by Article 49 of the Ukrainian Constitution and Article 283 of the Civil Code. More than that, the constitution guarantees health care at the expence of the state budget. So, in real life the constitution is not observed. In fact, there is no free medical service. If a hospital is a state one, then being in hospital is to be financed from the budget, though, as a rule, they ask patients to donate money to some “charity” organization, and then they get some medicines and equipment from this “medical organization”: and no receipts are given to patients”, the lawyer explaines.

“Everything is done according to the above-mentioned scheme which is accepted and understood. If something is free, you don't trust it and think that it is a trick, that is is of poor quality, that you won't get anything. That is why I know that there is nothing free and I have to pay”, Anastasiya shares her opinion.

Health care in occupation is even more confusing

Officials are silent about the work of the health care system in occupation. They have nothing to say about health care in frontline towns either.

“Hospitals on the uncontrolled territory are working though medicines and equipment are in scarce supply. However, the situation on the territory controlled by Ukraine is not better. Is it possible to be operated on without money? Of course, not. The problem with health care is the same everywhere in Ukraine. So, the form of providing medical service should be changed”, Tetyana sums up.
Those people whose health depends on taking some medicine regularly are in the zone of risk. The state took the responsibility to provide them with drugs.

“A very complicated situation was with medicines for diabetes on the territory of the Donetsk region which is controlled by Ukrainian authorities. The state did not purchase them. The medicines were bought only at the beginning of August though it had been planned for the first qurter of the year. Because of that, only 25% of patients are provided with insuline in Druzhkivka”, according to endocrinologist Natalya Gadzhanyan, who is from this town.

The medicines had been planned for Donetsk, but due to the current situation, they were sent to hospitals in the region. Thus, it was possible to temporarily solve the problem.

Friends helped Anastaiya to find the money. However, it is just “a drop” of sothething positive “in the ocean” of problems. The young girl cannot afford to be on a sick leave for a long time. She has to work.


New service "Explain Ukraine". This is a daily mailout of five articles which were written about the situation in the Donbas by Donbas journalists and translated into English. Honest vision of people who work in the field is unbiased and fresh which is crucial in the world which is full of desinformation and propaganda. We try to share this vision in out daily mailout.  You can subscribe here.

You can also join our Facebook community.