The Rozhyshche community in Volyn Oblast has secured almost €670,000 for a medical rehabilitation project from the Interreg NEXT Poland-Ukraine 2021-2027 program. With these funds, the community will purchase a state-of-the-art tomograph and other equipment for the local hospital. This investment will also allow the medical staff to explore and implement best practices in the field of rehabilitation. These upgrades will allow about 40,000 residents from Rozhyshche and neighboring communities to receive better medical services.

Interreg NEXT is an EU cooperation program with neighboring regions. Applications must be submitted in a cross-border partnership focused on environment, health, tourism, accessibility, border security, and people's collaboration. The goal is to build good neighborliness and overcome common challenges. The applications is selected by a Monitoring Committee consisting of public institutions, economic and social partners and bodies representing civil society appointed by each participating country.

The Rozhyshche’s victory was announced at the beginning of the year, and recently the Rozhysche hospital signed an implementation agreement with its Polish partner from Hrubieshiv County.

In May 2023, Mariia Pechko, Rozhyshche City Council’s Chief Specialist in project and investment activities, attended a training session to prepare for the Interreg NEXT Poland-Ukraine 2021-2027 program by the USAID HOVERLA Activity. At that time, Mariia did not anticipate how quickly she would need the new knowledge.

“At that time, our community didn't have a Polish partner, which is a mandatory requirement for participating in the program,” recalls Maria.

However, a few weeks later, the Rozhyshche Mayor traveled to Poland for humanitarian aid, which had been actively provided since the full-scale war. During the visit, he met with the deputy starosta of Hrubieshiv County in Poland, who unexpectedly suggested that Rozhyshche participate in Interreg NEXT and jointly write a rehabilitation project. Both communities have large multidisciplinary hospitals with similar services, capacities, and structures, which brought them together.

“We aim to develop rehabilitation services, so we were very excited about this proposal. People come to our community for treatment not only from neighboring communities but from the entire region. With the full-scale war, the need for rehabilitation has increased even more. For example, back in 2022, with the support of the USAID HOVERLA Activity, we even signed an intermunicipal agreement in this direction with the Kopachivska and Dorosynivska communities,” says Vyacheslav Polishchuk, the Rozhysche Mayor.

Together with local medical professionals, the Rozhyshche Council team compiled a list of necessary diagnostic and rehabilitation equipment to help treat disorders of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems. Viktor Redzii, the chief doctor of the Rozhyshche Multidisciplinary Hospital, explains:

"We are especially pleased to have a computer tomograph. It costs about half a million euros, which not every hospital can afford! In addition to the equipment, we have planned training for our medical staff, who will study the approaches of the best rehabilitation centers in western Ukraine and adopt the experience of Polish colleagues."

Although the main effort in writing the project came from the Polish side, which already had experience in such programs, the Rohyshche City Council, preparing its part, knew the important secrets for success — thanks to participation in the aforementioned training by the USAID HOVERLA Activity.

"We learned from practitioner trainers who had written, won, and implemented projects themselves. They advised on how to present the project, which indicators to focus concisely and substantively on, and what to consider when budgeting. This also helped us," says Mariia Pechko.

Overall, Rozhyshche and Hrubieshiv won over €1.5 million together. Winning the program will not only increase the volume and quality of services in the Rozhyshche community but also provide the opportunity to become a powerful rehabilitation center for the entire Volyn region and open new opportunities in participation in the  nextinternational projects. 

The USAID HOVERLA Activity supports the Ministry of Restoration’s efforts in developing cross-border cooperation. HOVERLA conducted a series of training sessions throughout 2023-2024. In March, 40 communities participated in one such training, learning how to properly submit applications. These training sessions help communities establish partnerships, gain experience in cross-border projects, and work with European organizations and funds on the path to EU integration.