Health Care in Ukraine

At the beginning of the third millennium Ukraine is facing deep changes and reforms in all spheres of political, economic and public life. These changes touch upon medicine as well, and health service in particular. The Constitution of Ukraine adopted on June 28, 1996 guarantees the rights of Ukrainian citizens to life, health protection, medical care and medical insurance, safe and healthy environment.

The present health service in Ukraine both preventive and curative was inherited from the former state. It was available to the whole population. It is an establishment and support of strong post graduate programs for training in family medicine, introducing insurance medicine, the creation of a wide network of private consulting rooms, dental and eye surgery etc. They are equipped with modern apparatus and devices, but their services are very expensive for the majority of the Ukrainian population. Many people still go to the state hospitals and polyclinics for their medical needs.

The most distinctive feature of health service in our country is prophylaxis of different diseases, the early detection of the first signs of the disease. Much attention is paid to popularization of medical science among the population. For this purpose the press, cinema, radio and TV programs are very helpful.

The basic medical units in our country are rural, district, regional or municipal polyclinics. The hospitals have different departments, which specialize in the treatment of particular diseases. In case of emergency you may dial 103 for the ambulance to come, which operates day and night and is free of charge, except private emergency service, for example “Borys” in Kyiv or “Into-Sana” in Odessa.

Special attention is paid to the health of mother and child. Maternity homes, Mother-and-Child Health Care Centres concentrate their efforts on the problems of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology. These problems are especially acute now when the majority of our population lives under ecologically unfavorable conditions and the questions of demography are of deep national concern.

A doctor in the modern world should develop the basic skills necessary to exclude serious illnesses, to diagnose early, to treat common health problems without expensive, sometimes invasive investigations and therapies, to manage chronic illnesses.

Ukrainian society needs citizens who are healthy, educated, motivated, and able to work for their country.

Exercise 6. Answer the questions to the text:

1. What does the Ukrainian Constitution guarantee?

2. How can the present day health service be described?

3. What is the most distinctive feature of health service?

4. What efforts are made for mother and child health care?

5. What are the basic medical units in Ukraine?

6. What kind of skills should a modern day doctor have?

7. What should a person do in case of emergency?

8. What is the cost of medical help in Ukraine?

Exercise 7. Give English equivalents of the following word combinations:

Спеціалізуватися на лікуванні; медичні потреби; відмінна особливість; раннє виявлення ознак захворювання; здорове навколишнє середовище; охорона здоров'я; профілактична та лікувальна медицина; загальні проблеми зі здоров'ям; страхова медицина; сімейна медицина; укомплектований сучасною апаратурою; державні лікарні і поліклініки; працювати цілодобово; приватна служба швидкої допомоги; пологовий будинок; сільські, районні і обласні поліклініки.

Exercise 8. Divide the given words into the table and translate them into Ukrainian:

Whole, inherited, sign, right, concern, effort, constantly, unfavourable, care, healthy, need, common, treatment, diagnose, distinctive, emerge, basic, operate, treat, practice, static, consulting, face, act, adopt, support, state, dial, considerable.