Medical reform in ukraine: assessments of ukrainians and regional research experience

• Main Author: O. І. Зубарєва
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Publishing House "Grani" 2019-06-01
• Series: Granì
• Subjects: Health system of Ukraine; modernization; public activists; innovation
• Online Access: https://grani.org.ua/index.php/journal/article/view/1361
• ISSN: 2077-1800; 2413-8738

The main objective of the article was to determine the peculiarities of the Ukrainian attitude towards the reform of the health system taking into account regional peculiarities. For this purpose, an author’s sociological study was conducted, using a focused interview. The purpose of the study was to analyze the level of support provided by active public organizations of those reforms that are being implemented in the modern Ukrainian society, including the medical ones. The research data «Health Index» are of great value. Ukraine». The research is conducted for the third year in a row and allows us to trace the dynamics of the evaluation of Ukrainian components of medical reform and has the following benefits: large sample size; representativeness of the survey results for each individual region of Ukraine. The latter can stimulate interregional exchange of positive practices. It is revealed that today the highest level of concern among Ukrainians is caused by high drug costs, corruption in the Ministry of Health, lack of modern equipment, informal payments by patients. According to expert estimates in Ukrainian society, reforms are mostly caused by a negative assessment in the public consciousness. In our view, such a reaction is the result of processes of inorganic modernization, which manifests itself in the cultural inertia, duality of the institutional environment and the opposition to radical structural changes. Accordingly, the success of reforming the health care system in Ukraine depends on the subjective perception of Ukrainians of the changes expected to be introduced by 2020. As a result of the study, it was possible to identify potential groups of Ukrainians in relation to medical reform. The first group is formed by those who can be conventionally called «optimists», or those who support the reform «from below». They are distinguished by a positive assessment of the changes introduced, moderate institutional trust in the state, high civic activity and conviction. The second group is «Neutral». They are characterized by cautious attitude to change, moderate civic activity, and trust in state institutions. And the third group form «pessimists.» They are united by a critical attitude to the reform. They are cautious about changes, characterized by low trust in the state, relatively low civic activity. It is determined that regional differences in the attitude and perception of medical reform can be explained by the difference in financing of provision of medical services in the regions and uneven information provision by the regional mass media of those reforms implemented in the health care system.