The Ministry of Health does not maintain records of military medical commissions (MMCs) operating at its subordinate healthcare facilities – Study findings

The Ministry of Health of Ukraine lacks basic information about the number of MMCs operating within its institutions. Additionally, there is no accounting of potential conscripts, which makes adequate system funding impossible.

Iryna Yakovets, the study’s co-author and analyst at the Media Initiative for Human Rights, stated this during the presentation of the study, “Blind Spots of the MMC: How the Examination System Works in Ukraine,” at the Media Center Ukraine.

“To ensure maximum and simplified access to MMCs, we established MMCs at healthcare facilities that are commonly referred to as ‘civilian’. These are municipal or state-owned institutions under the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Ministry of Health. We requested information and received responses about the work of these MMCs. We identified significant problems in the operations of MOH-subordinated MMCs,” she explained.

Firstly, Yakovets noted that the MOH does not possess information about the number of these MMCs.

“This means the MOH does not effectively exercise its influence to direct and coordinate the MMCs’ activities,” the analyst emphasized.

According to Yakovets, the absence of planning and accounting for potential conscript numbers leads to the formal funding of examinations under the state medical guarantee program, without a reliable basis.

“Potential conscript numbers are not accounted for or planned. As everyone knows, the initial MMC examination is currently conducted under the state medical guarantee program and is state-funded. For a healthcare facility to receive funds for conducting MMCs, it must submit estimates to the Ministry of Health on how many people it will potentially serve. But such information doesn’t exist,” she said. 

“While conducting the study, my colleagues and I were unable to understand how the National Health Service of Ukraine allocates funds or enters into agreements when there is no data and no one is calculating it, even though they should be. After all, we have mobilization plans, and most municipal healthcare facilities are subordinate to regional administrations that have the necessary data. There is no planning or accounting for potential conscript numbers, and municipal facilities can’t calculate the necessary funds,” Yakovets emphasized.

She also stressed the lack of centralized reporting and statistics on how many people undergo MMCs at such medical institutions.

“There are no statistical reporting forms approved by the Ministry of Health (MOH) or the Ministry of Defense. There’s no information on how many people have undergone MMCs. The data collected by the health department is essentially an initiative of their own, and several regions simply replied that such data doesn’t exist,” Yakovets reported.

“Therefore, we believe that first of all it is necessary to improve the operations of those MMCs based at MOH-subordinated healthcare facilities,” she concluded.

Read more: https://mediacenter.org.ua/news