Liashko: Council for restoration of Okhmatdyt will approve phased reconstruction plan in coming days

This was announced by Health Minister Viktor Liashko during the national telethon ‘United News’, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

‘The Ministry of Health, together with all the teams, is doing everything possible to carry out priority work that will allow us to mothball and close all the windows and heating network openings before winter to keep the building functioning. We are currently forming the Council for the Restoration of Okhmatdyt, and on Friday there was a meeting of philanthropists who are selecting NGOs. On Monday or Tuesday, the Recovery Council will approve a phased recovery plan, where the priority measures include replacing all the windows,’ said Liashko.

According to him, the Ministry of Health is working in parallel with all the key design institutes of the Ministry of Infrastructure, which have the ability to quickly conduct a detailed technical analysis of the state of destruction.

‘This is to say that, for example, windows can be installed on this wall, we will start tender procedures through Prozorro under certain criteria that we were promised to develop by UNDP, whose head is a member of the Recovery Council. Therefore, all processes will be transparent. We have options to get everything up and running so that the hospital, the new building that was damaged, can operate in the autumn and winter. So we are doing everything possible,’ the minister assured.

As Ukrinform reported, on 8 July, Russia carried out a terrorist attack on the Okhmatdyt children's hospital, destroying one building of the hospital, damaging the surgical and new buildings of the hospital.

Following the Russian terrorist attack, UAH 312 million in donations were directly transferred to the charitable account of the National Children's Hospital ‘Okhmatdyt’, UAH 378 million to the account of the charitable foundation ‘Okhmatdyt - Healthy Childhood’, and UAH 320 million was raised on the UNITED-24 platform. UAH 100 million was allocated by the government from the reserve fund.

American philanthropist Howard Buffett has also allocated USD 11.2 million, but it will be provided with the necessary equipment. Separately, the Lithuanian government allocated USD 1 million. And the German government has announced its intention to allocate EUR 10 million.

On 19 July, the Charitable Foundation ‘Okhmatdyt - Healthy Childhood’ announced a tender for the current repair and interior decoration of the building of the Modern Medical and Diagnostic Complex of the National Specialised Hospital ‘Okhmatdyt’.

The Zaporizhzhia-based Bud-Technology was selected among 14 bidders. The Nashi Hroshi project noted that the winner's offer was more expensive than the other bidders, and that the company did not have the appropriate equipment to carry out the necessary work.

On 2 August, Health Minister Viktor Lyashko said that the funds raised by the Okhmatdyt - Healthy Childhood charity foundation to restore the hospital after the Russian terrorist attack would be transferred to the treasury accounts of the Okhmatdyt National Children's Hospital. Their use will be controlled by the Audit and Supervisory Board, and a tender for the reconstruction of Okhmatdyt will be held through Prozorro.

On 5 August, the Ministry of Health approved the Regulation on the Council for Controlling the Restoration of Destroyed (Damaged) Buildings of the National Children's Specialised Hospital Okhmatdyt - the Council for Restoration of Okhmatdyt.

On 10 August, the first eight members of the Council for Controlling the Restoration of Destroyed (Damaged) Buildings of the National Children's Specialised Hospital ‘Okhmatdyt’ of the Ministry of Health were approved.

On 17 August, Oleksandr Urin, who heads the intensive and efferent therapy unit for acute intoxication at the hospital, was temporarily appointed as the CEO of the hospital.Volodymyr Zhovnir was suspended from his duties as CEO of the hospital until the completion of inspections by the National Police, other law enforcement agencies and the Health Ministry commission.