Presentation of the medical program ReHUB within the framework of the All-Ukrainian Conference "Doctors for Heroes"
On March 29, the All-Ukrainian Conference "Doctors for Heroes" took place in Kyiv, with the aim of discussing and finding effective solutions for the treatment and rehabilitation of combat facial injuries from both governmental institutions and civil society.
This conference served as a communication platform for experts in various medical fields, doctors of different specialties, patients undergoing facial trauma rehabilitation, representatives of governmental and local authorities, public leaders, charitable and civic organizations, donor community, and other stakeholders, who discussed pathways to achieving effective solutions in providing quality and comprehensive medical services for patients with such injuries.
KOLO Charitable Foundation joined the conference to participate in discussions addressing the lack of systematic approaches to the treatment and rehabilitation process for patients with facial injuries caused by war in Ukraine. Such injuries are complex not only from a medical standpoint but also due to their socio-psychological component. The quality of life and social relationships of individuals who have partially or completely lost facial organs are dire, affecting their self-perception and societal identification. Therefore, finding solutions on this issue requires nationwide efforts and immediate action.
During the conference, there were 7 discussion panels and several presentations involving leading experts in maxillofacial surgery, ophthalmology, and dentistry, as well as representatives of the National Health Service of Ukraine, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine, the Department of Health of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the Charity Foundation "Patients of Ukraine," the Charity Foundation "Pislya Sluzhby," KOLO Charitable Foundation, IMATEH Medical, 3D Metal Tech, and patients who shared their treatment and rehabilitation experiences within the "Doctors for Heroes" project. Among the topics discussed by conference participants were:
providing treatment and rehabilitation for patients with facial injuries;
providing assistance to patients with facial injuries at evacuation stages in state hospitals;
secondary reconstruction of consequences of combat injuries for patients with facial defects and deformities;
the issue of ocular prosthetics and social support for patients with ocular and exoprosthetics;
medical-psychological rehabilitation of patients with facial injuries;
digital technologies experience in the treatment of injuries, etc.
The war has led to a widespread need for reconstructive medicine and prosthetic application to restore individuals to full life. This has resulted in an increased demand for specialists in this medical field, as well as for the implementation of innovative technological solutions for the production of quality and effective prosthetics.
In response to the challenges of reconstructive medicine, the KOLO Charity Foundation presented its own solutions - the ReHUB program and the "Equal to Equal" project. ReHUB is an ecosystem that will bring together partners from the medical, educational, and technological-innovative sectors to ensure the quality recovery and social adaptation of veterans. The goal of the ReHUB program is a healthy society and equal opportunities achieved through the collaboration of dedicated professionals in the fields of medicine, education, technology, and the public sector.
"Equal to Equal" is a motivational approach to the adaptation of those who have lost limbs or suffered facial injuries leading to loss of vision, hearing, nose, or teeth. Within this project, a series of videos featuring KOLO Charitable Foundation ambassador Oleksandr Darmoros - a military psychologist, have already been created and posted on the YouTube channel "@oleksandr_darmoros".
More about ReHUB here.
Natalya Lyutykova, Head of "Doctors for Heroes" project, notes: "There are two important aspects for solving the problem of treating and rehabilitating patients with facial injuries, and both are related to accessibility. Firstly, the state must create an appropriate funding program to cover the costs of producing personalized medical products (implants) and services and products in the field of exoprosthetics, ocular prosthetics, and dental implants after traumatic or post-traumatic tooth loss. The current system of coverage from the National Health Service of Ukraine clearly does not meet the existing needs. Secondly, it is important to support and stimulate the development of not only medical institutions but also rehabilitation centers in all regions of Ukraine. To implement the principle of territorial accessibility, it is necessary to create conditions for the training of specialists, especially in psychological rehabilitation, occupational therapy, and involve them in work at regional levels, encourage veterans who have similar experiences to rehabilitate their comrades under the "equal to equal" rule. Equally important is the development of methodology for working with patients who have facial injuries and its dissemination at the state level".
Oleg Dudin, coordinator of service organization for vulnerable populations at the organization "Act for Health", also participated in the conference: "The All-Ukrainian Conference "Doctors for Heroes" drew the attention of representatives from various sectors to the issue of facial trauma and the need to identify patients and provide assistance. The need for treatment and rehabilitation is obvious, but the medical system itself will not solve all issues, so the path to developing services for people with war injuries should be multisectoral. Within the humanitarian direction, the Ukrainian-Swiss project "Act for Health" organizes activities of mobile medical teams with psychological assistance and teams providing integrated medical-social home care services, which provide services for vulnerable populations, internally displaced persons, residents of separated communities, as well as patients with limited mobility. The organization of multisectoral services is a complex but important and achievable process that positively affects the individual's condition, quality of life, and treatment effectiveness".
