University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy establishes School of Public Health (04/25/04)

University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy establishes School of Public Health

CHICAGO - Within the last decade, Ukraine has experienced an alarming increase in health problems and mortality throughout the population. In response to the nation's current health crisis, the National University of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy has established a School of Management of Public Health to advance the management of public health in Ukraine.

The NUKMA School of Public Health's mission is to undertake an intensive study of Ukraine's health care and service delivery system with the purpose of identifying solutions to the problems of institutional reform and professional training of health care providers. The School of Public Health faculty will carry the burden of providing high-quality teaching, research and advisory activities.

The school's academic program will begin on September 1 by offering a two-year master's degree in management of public health, which will be recognized internationally. The new dean of the KM School of Public Health is Prof. Irena Griga.

The new public health program is backed by a consortium of partners, including the Kyiv Mohyla Academy, the Kyiv Medical Academy of Post-Graduate Education, Ukraine's Ministry of Health and the School of Health Science of Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

With the assistance of Dr. Daniel Hryhorchuk, the School of Public Health of the University of Illinois in Chicago also became a partner of the program. Dr. Hryhorchuk received a grant from the Association Liaison Office for University Cooperation and Development (through the U.S. Agency for International Development) to carry out joint programs in public health with Ukraine. Dr. Hryhorchuk is a member of the board of directors of the Kyiv Mohyla Foundation of America.

"Establishment of the school was a necessity, an urgent issue to focus on bringing changes into the system of human values, to break a wall which stands between the providers of healthcare and the patients' needs. All of us must get used to the idea that the interests of the patient have to come first as the health of the patient is a top priority of any public health system," said NUKMA president Viacheslav Briukhovetsky at a February conference in Kyiv dedicated to establishing the NaUKMA School of Public Health.

Other conference speakers included Maastricht University professor of health economics, Wim Groot, who said that although governments universally resist change, they need to promote public health through economic incentives. The main sources of Ukraine's current health problems are believed to be lifestyle factors such as smoking, alcohol and general nutrition.

Prior research shows that about 20 percent of Ukraine's health problems are due to genetic factors, another 20 percent due to the ecology and environment, 10 percent due to quality of medical care and 50 percent due to lifestyle and socioeconomic conditions, showing a direct correlation between the state of the country's economy and the general health of the population.

Conference speakers pointed out that a change must take place not only on the part of government, but that public perception and understanding of health issues and responsibilities must be altered as well. A new national health policy must be developed. The system of public health delivery needs to be decentralized, and a system of medical insurance established in which the financial responsibility is shared by the government, employers and individuals.

Pavlo Sheremeta, dean of the Kyiv-Mohyla Business School said it is necessary to implement new methods of public health management that focus on the patient, not the provider. He said it is essential to adapt to new economic realities by establishing a more effective level of management of all human resources engaged in the health care system - doctors, nurses and management personnel.

The Kyiv Mohyla Foundation of America supports the mission and aims of the Kyiv Mohyla School of Public Health. Reaching the goals of this initiative will impact the health of the Ukrainian nation. This new program will require energy, management and support. At the inception of the program, there is an immediate need to fund scholarships for three master's level students. The tuition for the two-year program is $3,500 (U.S.). The school has already received a grant to fund three students for the master's program, but only on condition that the grant be matched by equal amounts for three other students.

Support for the Kyiv Mohyla Academy's programs can be made through a monetary donation, an insurance policy, a gift of shares, a scholarship or in any other manner suitable to the donor. The National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy completed a decade of re-establishing itself as the premier institution of higher education of Ukraine. The next decade brings more challenges that will bring the school within the group of the world's best universities. These achievements became possible only through the dedication and support of people in Ukraine and in the diaspora who understand the importance of Kyiv Mohyla Academy's role in educating the young people who will be Ukraine's future leaders.

Donations are tax-deductible and may be sent to: Kyiv Mohyla Foundation, P.O. Box 46009, Chicago, IL 60646.

| Home Page |