Ukraine’s physical rehabilitation system is shedding its Soviet legacy fast. What is emerging in its place — evidence-based, multidisciplinary, barrier-free — is beginning to benchmark against European peers. Seven newly designated Centers of Excellence, established by the Ministry of Health with support from WHO Ukraine as a strategic partner and Enabel (Belgium) as the primary funding and technical partner, are the main institutional engine of that shift.
The Seven Hubs
As of April 2026, seven facilities are enrolled in the project per the Ministry of Health:
- Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Clinical Hospital
- Dnipro City Clinical Hospital No. 4
- Vinnytsia Regional Clinical Psychoneurological Hospital (named after Academician O. I. Yushchenko)
- Ternopil Regional Clinical Psychoneurological Hospital
- Ohmatdyt National Children’s Specialised Hospital, Kyiv
- Lisova Polyana Mental Health and Veterans Rehabilitation Centre (MoH Ukraine)
- Rivne Regional Clinical Hospital
What the Hubs Do
- Participate in rehabilitation and assistive technology research
- Host clinical placements for undergraduate rehab students and PRM physician internships (formal education)
- Run master classes, professional schools, and CPD trainings (non-formal education)
- Serve as nodes for knowledge exchange and peer learning across facilities
- Lead policy advocacy for quality improvement in rehabilitation services
- Collect standardised statistical data on rehabilitation activity
Two examples: Ohmatdyt in Kyiv structures its existing paediatric referral experience into a formal teaching resource for the next generation of specialists. Lisova Polyana, dedicated to veteran mental health and rehabilitation, operates at the intersection of PRM, MHPSS, and assistive technology — exactly the multidisciplinary profile the hub model is designed to formalise.
Challenges
- Funding gap: WHO Ukraine is scaling back hub support from April 2026 due to budget constraints
- Coverage: as of February 2026, only ~50% of facilities in the capable network had engaged with hub training activities
- Workforce: PRM as a specialty is barely a decade old in Ukraine; certified specialists remain well below demand
- Geography: all seven hubs are in relatively stable regions; the highest-need frontline oblasts remain without hub infrastructure