Kyiv, 17 January 2024 – The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine and the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Centre report the successful implementation of joint projects that have boosted the centre's capabilities and expanded its opportunities to provide comprehensive assistance to individuals affected by the war.

Two projects were executed within the grant partnership – each significantly contributing to the development of rehabilitation services for the enhanced recovery of patients with war traumas.

Modern rehabilitation equipment was procured under the "Comprehensive Development of the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Centre" project, which was supported by the Republic of Korea and Germany. It included a universal therapy table, sliding bars, a manual ergotherapy table, a leg press machine, a portable medical aspirator, an orbiterk, an electrocardiograph, a table tennis table, a sports net, a set of dumbbells, and more. This equipment enables rehabilitation assistance to be provided to 60-70 patients per month.

As part of the same project, the centre's prosthetics specialists received training abroad, with five of them attending a two-week programme in Duderstadt, Germany to enhance their knowledge of lower limb prosthetics. Another two specialists were certified in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, advancing their skills in upper limb prosthetics. Raising the qualifications of the UNBROKEN Centre's prosthetics workshop specialists expands the possibilities to provide improved prosthetics in Ukraine.

Olena Ivanova, UNDP Project Manager for Rehabilitation and Inclusion, emphasised the transformative power of UNDP’s partnership with the centre:

"Together, we’re providing a strong foundation for modern and high-quality rehabilitation services, and instilling hope for recovery in people,” Ivanova said. “Such projects exemplify our commitment to leaving no one behind, and ensuring every person has the opportunity to get free rehabilitation."

Nazarii Zhmurko, the head of the Medical Innovations charity foundation, noted the charity’s commitment to improving medical services in Ukraine, and expressed satisfaction with its collaboration with major international partners like UNDP.

"We’re pleased to help purchase the latest medical and rehabilitation equipment for the quality treatment of Ukrainians, and to assist in training Ukrainian specialists in advanced techniques,” Zhmurko said.

Oleh Bilyanskii, the head of the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Centre, highlighted the centre's focus on rescue work, prosthetics and rehabilitating Ukrainians within the country.

"It is crucial that we can do this with the best rehabilitation equipment. Patients can get top-level care in one place – our centre,” Bilyanskii said.

The second, and equally significant joint initiative, is the "Let's See Victory: A Rehabilitation Programme for People with Visual Impairments" project, which was implemented with the financial support of the Japanese government. This initiative allows the UNBROKEN Centre to rehabilitate veterans and civilian individuals who have lost their vision due to war-related injuries. The project provides special equipment for rehabilitation and adaptation, such as white canes, SHOWDOWN tables, computers, Braille printers, and more.

The initiative also features a peer-to-peer mentoring programme and expert support for implementing a new rehabilitation model. The centre's specialists now have everything they need to provide professional assistance to patients with visual impairments, helping them adapt to their new circumstances, and to develop life-necessary skills such as spatial orientation, mobility, housekeeping, and telephone and computer use.

Additionally, as part of this project, the UNBROKEN Centre will receive equipment for ocular prosthetics and provide training for ophthalmologist-prosthetists, physiotherapists, and a psychologist. This demonstrates the project’s comprehensive approach to creating all the required conditions for rehabilitating patients with visual impairments.

Background: The project "Comprehensive Development of the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Centre" was implemented by the Medical Innovations charity under the UNDP project "Supporting the Rehabilitation of People with Disabilities Caused by War." The project was financially supported by the governments of the Republic of Korea and Germany. The project "Let's See Victory: Rehabilitation Programme for People with Visual Impairments" was implemented by Medical Innovations under UNDP’s "Promotion of Human Security in Ukraine through Responding to the Multidimensional Crisis Caused by the War" project, which was funded by the Government of Japan.

Media enquiries: Yuliia Samus, UNDP Ukraine Head of Communications; e-mail: yuliia.samus@undp.org