Two-and-a-half years after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Kyiv suburb of Bucha has become a symbol of rebirth and recovery. Its neighbourhoods and streets, which still show traces of the occupation, have literally risen from the ashes despite frequent missile attacks and daily air raid alarms. 

On its way to recovery, Bucha is being supported by donor partners and international organisations. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was one of the first to come to the city’s aid: Immediately after Ukraine regained control of Bucha, an emergency recovery project funded by the Government of Japan was launched. In the subsequent months, almost 30 buildings destroyed during the occupation were demolished, and a landfill with debris from the destruction during the occupation was cleaned up. 

Since then, even as the town recovers, UNDP has not stopped its assistance to Bucha and has been successfully implementing a number of projects in the city, in the areas of humanitarian demining, debris management, energy and water supply recovery, and public services provision. 

In particular, as part of “Mayors for Economic Growth,” a joint project of the European Union and UNDP, the first rehabilitation department providing outpatient services was opened in Bucha, operating at the Municipal Consultative and Diagnostic Centre. The department provides assistance to all categories of citizens, including war veterans, children with disabilities, people who have had injuries, surgery and strokes, and patients with musculoskeletal and neurological disorders.  

The project also funded the purchase of rehabilitation equipment, advanced training for a rehabilitation therapist, and helped to renovate the premises of the newly created department, which is expected to serve about 2,000 residents of Bucha every year. 

Photo: Oleksandr Rozhenyuk / UNDP Ukraine 

“Being in the state of war, many veterans need high-quality rehabilitation services, and now they will be able to get it here, close to home. In addition, this department will serve our entire community, helping local residents to restore their health,” Bucha Mayor Anatolii Fedoruk said during the opening of the new department. 

Interestingly, the decision to open the city’s first rehabilitation unit providing outpatient services was taken in consultation with the residents of Bucha. Prior to the project launch, the city team, led by the mayor, completed a learning cycle that included social listening and strategic design sessions that helped them better understand the current problems of the city and its citizens. 

Currently, the department employs five specialists, although this is only half of the required number. One of the specialists, Anatolii Protsyk, is a candidate of medical sciences and a rehabilitation specialist in the newly created department was the first orthopaedic traumatologist in Bucha. He has 10 years of experience at the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and another 33 years at the Platon Shypyk National University of Health Academy. 

“All my life I have dreamed of returning to Bucha,” Protsyk says. “Thanks to the creation of the new rehabilitation department, this has finally become possible. Since the opening of the facility, a large flow of patients immediately began. We physically do not have time to accept everyone, as the department is supposed to employ nine specialists.”  

Even though the team of specialists is incomplete, six or seven patients are treated every week by a physical therapist, an occupational therapist, a psychologist, and a speech therapist. The treatment lasts 14 days and is free of charge for all. Currently, two veterans are also being treated in the rehabilitation department. In total, once the department is 100% staffed, it will be able to treat 14 patients simultaneously, including children. 

“Most people complain of musculoskeletal diseases,” Protsyk says. “These include cervical, thoracic, lumbar osteochondrosis, deforming arthrosis of the lower extremities, hip and knee joints. For their treatment, procedures involving various physical activities are performed. By applying certain exercises, we can have a positive impact on the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems, as well as the digestive system.” Almost all local residents who seek help also display alarming signs of severe psychological trauma, Protsyk adds. 

Photo: Oleksandr Rozhenyuk / UNDP Ukraine 

According to him, the approach to rehabilitation is completely different now from just 10 years ago. He himself received advanced training as part of the Mayors for Economic Growth project. 

“I was surprised (by the new approaches) from the first day of classes and from the first lecture, even though physical rehabilitation was familiar to me!” he says. “Previously, it was considered sufficient to successfully perform a surgical intervention. But today we realise that this is only half the battle. More than half of the treatment time is taken up by rehabilitation. When I started my studies, I encountered this multimodal approach, which simultaneously includes the work of a psychologist, nutritionist, and other specialists. Then I saw the concept of comprehensive rehabilitation in a different way.” 

Photo: Oleksandr Rozhenyuk / UNDP Ukraine 

According to the Ministry of Health, about 200,000 patients in Ukraine need quality rehabilitation every year, and experts predict that this number will increase significantly after the war ends. Anatolii Protsyk says if there were more institutions like the rehabilitation department in Bucha it would help meet the demand for rehabilitation, as well as make it more accessible and closer to those in need. 

“If other healthcare facilities like the one in our city are opened in Ukraine, we will be ready for many potential challenges in the future,” Protsyk says. “First, we will be able to provide comprehensive assistance to veterans returning from the frontline in a timely manner, and second, we will be able to provide decent working conditions for our doctors so that they don’t have to choose between working in Ukraine or going abroad.”