They mentioned medicine. On the occasion of Medical Worker’s Day, President Zelenskyy issued five decrees aimed at improving the state of the medical community in Ukraine. The changes relate to the provision of military service for medics and improved financing of rural medicine.
Officer rank for medics who were called up
According to Decree No. 486/2024 amendments were made to the regulations on military service, which allow medics to immediately receive an officer’s rank upon being drafted into military service. This means that doctors who are called up will immediately receive the rank of junior lieutenant. Such a change actually brings us back to the days when all doctors received the rank of officer and passed the military department. The change is important, although it will certainly raise questions among those doctors who studied for 4.5 years at the military department under a contract, investing their own funds in it. However, in general, the changes are positive, because earlier there were cases when doctors were mobilized outside of their specialty.
Rural medicine to be?
About a third of the entire population of Ukraine lives in rural areas, while access to primary medical care is limited for many. Doctors do not want to go to the village. And this is understandable: rural medicine is financed according to the residual principle, and rural dispensaries often do not have basic conditions – not even water supply or bathrooms, not to mention generators, which are now becoming the basis for providing any services, not only medical ones. During the war, when the load on medical institutions increased due to a large flow of immigrants, the work of doctors became even more difficult.
At the same time, ideally, a rural resident should receive primary medical care at the same level as a city resident. A lot is needed to achieve this ideal, but certain steps have already been taken.
The President of Ukraine initiated new measures to support the medical community, in particular, medical institutions in rural areas. Decree No. 483/2024 provides that in 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine will establish an increased adjustment factor and increase the capitation rate in the medical guarantee program for primary medical care facilities that serve the rural population. For reference, we note that the capitation rate is a fixed amount of money that a medical institution receives per patient (Per capita) for a certain period of time (usually a year), regardless of the number of services provided to this patient. An increase in this indicator for rural doctors means that doctors will receive more money for each patient, which will contribute to better pay for doctors and nurses in rural areas. So it is expected that specialists will be encouraged to go to villages and serve rural communities.
In addition, the president ordered to improve access to medicines in remote communities through the delivery of medicines by postal operators, in particular through the “Affordable Medicines” program. The Cabinet of Ministers should also introduce incentives for the use of existing infrastructure and consider the possibility of expanding the network of pharmacies and primary health care centers dealing with the circulation of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors. This is especially important due to the increase in the number of palliative patients and patients with injuries caused by the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
Next year, the Cabinet of Ministers will launch a program that will provide medical workers with housing if they fill critical vacancies in rural hospitals. The state will compensate housing leasing payments for such employees.
Communities that feel the need for medical workers will be able to conclude regional contracts for the training of personnel in institutions of higher education. Local administrations have already been mandated to restore planning and staffing mechanisms to better meet the needs of health services in rural areas.
The status of a national institution where defenders of Ukraine are saved
The Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics received national status NAMN of Ukraine.
There is no doubt about such a decision, because in this medical institution about 300 operations are performed every week, of which 90% are extremely complex. The main emphasis is placed on many hours of reconstructive operations, which allow the wounded and injured to return to a full life. Currently, two-thirds of patients are defenders of Ukraine. More than 40,000 military personnel have already received help at this facility.
Among the initiatives to support doctors are awards and scholarships.
47 doctors from different regions of Ukraine received state awards and titles of honored doctors and healthcare workers. 30 health care professionals who have reached the age of seventy have been awarded Lifetime Government Scholarships for personal achievements. Another 58 healthcare workers were awarded two-year state scholarships for their significant contribution and conscientious work.
Tatyana Morarash
