Conference on Achievements and Next Steps: Annual Summary and Future Plans

On 3 December 2024, the “Conference on Achievements and Next Steps” took place — an important event for our project. Together with key partners and guests, we summarized the year’s results, highlighted significant initiatives that contributed to the development of professional medical communities, improved the quality of medical education, and shaped effective healthcare policies. Throughout the day, lively discussions addressed challenges affecting the implementation of initiatives, as well as joint plans for 2025.

First block of the Conference: medical education

The first part of the conference was dedicated to medical education. During the morning panel discussion, “Development and implementation of medical education policy,” Mladena Kachurets, a policy development consultant for the Ukrainian-Swiss project “Medical Education Development,” Serhii Ubohov, head of the Department of medical personnel, education, and science at the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, and Olena Nykonchuk, deputy head of the Department — head of the medical personnel coordination Department at the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, presented the results of their work on the document “Strategic directions for nursing development in Ukraine.”

Olena Nykonchuk noted: “We understood that this document would mark the beginning of nursing reform. It can be called a mission, a vision, or an outlook, but it certainly contains everything important that we want to implement. As the Minister said: ‘Before finalizing the document, ask yourself what you see the professional of 2035 looking like, imagine their portrait, and only then approve the strategic directions for nursing development.'”

Mladena Kachurets added: “This is a true example of synergy, where international partners and the Ministry collaborate on a joint project, resulting in truly powerful initiatives. The developments in the ‘Education’ section are not something new — they are based on the experience we have gained through cooperation with the community over many years. That is why the discussion document went smoothly — everyone understood its necessity and importance.” 

One of the key discussion topics was the adoption of the “Regulations on Peer Groups.” Serhii Ubohov emphasized: “We are interested in having the Regulations adopted as soon as possible, as it will launch the system of Continuing Professional Development (CPD), particularly for nurses. The document outlines all types of activities and criteria for CPD credit allocation, including peer groups.”

The topic of medical education continued with two panel discussions: “Improving the qualifications of medical educators,” moderated by Olena Ihnashchuk, medical education coordinator of the Ukrainian-Swiss project “Medical Education Development,” and “Enhancing the quality of medical education through institutional development in Ukraine,” moderated by Matvii Khrenov, co-founder of the Ukrainian Healthcare Center (UHC).

Participants in the first discussion shared their experiences and described the changes in medical education over the past year. Inna Chukhno (Kharkiv National Medical University) mentioned a research project, the implementation of a hybrid learning format, and strategic training that encouraged the search for new solutions in the institution. Andrii Loboda (Sumy State University) emphasized unexpected factors that contributed to changes, including more motivated students, active collaboration with the Ministry of Health, and digitalization of education. Antonina Mazhorivska (Zhytomyr Medical Institute) noted that the project successfully combined medical education with practice, and the training she conducted for practicing nurses became a valuable experience for her and her colleagues.

Participants in the second panel discussion addressed changes in medical education at the institutional level. They discussed change agents emerging in pilot higher education institutions, improvements in communication at various levels resulting from participation in strategic development training, and the unification of the educational community around shared ideas and values.

Please find the recording of the first part of the conference on our YouTube channel.

Second block of the conference: primary healthcare

The second part of the conference focused on the project’s initiatives in primary healthcare. Two panel discussions took place: “CPD—What We Do,” moderated by Daryna Bohdan, primary healthcare strengthening coordinator of the Ukrainian-Swiss project “Medical Education Development,” and “Nurses can! But for development, they need a supportive environment and high-quality educational opportunities,” moderated by Matvii Khrenov.

The first discussion featured an open and inspiring conversation about the continuing professional development of primary healthcare physicians. Iryna Voloshyna, a family doctor and co-founder of the Azov School of Family Medicine, shared the story of the school’s creation and its impact on the professional growth of family doctors. Mladena Kachurets spoke about the Azov Camp for Interns — an initiative of the project that helps young specialists not only acquire knowledge but also integrate into the professional community. Maryna Opalenko, a family doctor and peer group facilitator, shared her experience at WONCA 2024, made possible with the project’s support. She also inspired attendees by sharing her unexpected win in a lottery — a chance to attend WONCA 2025 in Lisbon, for which she is already preparing. Olena Matsekh, a family doctor at “svoi.ridni,” discussed why doctors should develop managerial competencies and how it complements clinical skills, sharing her experience studying in the “Healthcare Management” master’s program at NaUKMA: “As a doctor, I lacked an understanding of how the system functions and what could be done to influence it more. I believe one shouldn’t limit themselves by thinking that being a doctor makes management irrelevant. That is stagnation. I am acquiring many different skills that I use in my medical practice, such as delegation and time management. Moreover, this program helps me avoid burnout, as I see many ordinary people driving change.” Yevheniia Melnyk, head of the NSHU Academy, explained how the NSHU Academy supports the development of new CPD formats.

A special focus was placed on the nursing pilot project “Nurses Can!” aimed at creating favorable conditions for the professional growth of nurses. Discussions covered definitions, the need to expand nurses’ responsibilities, the development of clinical and soft skills, the connection between organizational culture and the expanded role of nurses, and effective collaboration with primary care doctors.

The conference concluded with discussions on new focus areas introduced in the second phase: organizational culture and ethics & confidentiality in healthcare.

The first discussion featured Tetiana Somova, a specialist in strategic medical communications, who spoke about the significance of organizational culture and its impact on the efficiency of medical teams. For the second topic, we invited Ihor Zastavnyi and Anastasiia Khodan, who explained why adhering to ethical standards and confidentiality is crucial for doctors and medical professionals.

Please find the recording of the first part of the conference on our YouTube channel.

Thanks to the joint efforts of our team and partners, we summarized the year, highlighted key achievements, and formed a clear vision for the next steps. Many challenges lie ahead, but we are confident that through collaboration, we will bring all our plans to life!