Access to medicines in villages: a social project "Accessible Pharmacy" is underway in Kyiv region

The social project "Affordable Pharmacy" continues in the Kyiv region - an initiative that allows residents of remote villages to receive the necessary medicines, saving time and resources on the way to the city, reports UNN.

Details

Mobile pharmacy points have already visited the Yahotyn, Baryshevka, Myronivka, Studenikivska and Zgurivka communities. The project is implemented by the MHP-Hromadi Charitable Foundation jointly with the Ukrvakcina State Enterprise of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.

"This project allows residents of villages to receive medicines without unnecessary waste of time and resources. It is about affordable medicines. The "Affordable Pharmacy" project allows a person to go out and buy the necessary medicines in their village," says Andriy Poluden, regional director of MHP-Agro-S.

In a mobile pharmacy, you can not only buy medicines with and without a prescription, but also order the necessary drugs and consult with a pharmacist. Visitors to such pharmacies most often buy cardiology drugs, drugs for the treatment of diabetes, painkillers, anti-inflammatory drugs, etc.

"These are mainly drugs for the treatment of chronic diseases, including cardiac, antidiabetic, and gastrointestinal. Most of the population in rural areas also buy painkillers: both tablets and ointments. People in the village work a lot, so they constantly have such a need," comments Natalia Chaikivska, senior pharmacist of the mobile pharmacy.

The "Affordable Pharmacy" project, as a pilot project, was launched at the end of last year in the Myronivka community in the Kyiv region. After receiving positive feedback from residents of the community, this year the affordable pharmacy went to other remote villages of the Kyiv region. Since the beginning of the year, more than 400 residents of small communities in the Kyiv region have been able to purchase medicines in a mobile pharmacy in their villages.

"The "Affordable Pharmacy" project has been operating in the Zugrivka community relatively recently. This is only the second visit, but we have already received a lot of positive feedback, because people can freely come and buy any medicines. In addition, residents of settlements have the opportunity to order medicines that are not available at this pharmacy point," comments Yulia Korol, Head of the Social Development Group "North" of the MHP-Hromadi CF.

The organizers emphasize that the initiative aims primarily to help the elderly, who are most in need of access to medicines.

"Rural communities are mostly inhabited by elderly people who have virtually no access to medicines, because none of these settlements where our mobile pharmacy operates has a registered pharmacy," adds Korol.

Residents of remote villages have already felt the benefits of pharmacies on wheels. Now they do not need to go to the nearest cities to buy what they need - the pharmacy comes to them.

If the initiative receives positive feedback from residents of remote villages, the organizers promise to scale up the "Affordable Pharmacy" to other communities in Ukraine, in particular to the western regions.

Reference

"MHP-Hromadi" is a Ukrainian charitable foundation that started its activity in 2015. Its main mission is the comprehensive development of communities. The geography of activity includes 13 regions of Ukraine: more than 700 towns and villages. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, the Foundation has systematically supported people in the regions of hostilities, Ukrainian defenders and rescuers, communities, hospitals and maternity hospitals, charitable institutions that care for orphans and the elderly, as well as people who have been left without homes and livelihoods due to the war.