Caritas Ukraine in search of alternative path for development and funding of social services delivery

15.03.13, Ukraine
Two seminars were organized in the framework of the project «Program of assistance at home (Home Care) for seniors in Ukraine». The first one was given to regional Home Care project managers. The other one – for directors of Caritas Ukraine regional organizations. Nowadays there are nearly 20 regional Caritas organizations; Home Care project operates in 8 of them.

Work directed at care of seniors’ health and quality of life is of top priority for Caritas Ukraine. Such activities are being implemented for more than 12 years by means of Home Care project. In Lviv there is also medical establishment called Sheptytsky Hospital; palliative medical services are rendered; rehabilitation center for addicted individuals operates; assistance is provided to people with HIV/AIDS.

The purpose of Home Care program is to enhance the living standards of isolated seniors, feeble, terminally-ill individuals and those who need constant or temporary assistance as a result of disease progression or received injury. Workers of eight social centers provide people in need with wide range of services. In particular, assistance with activities of daily living for the ill and feeble; medical services; housekeeping; resolving legal issues; organizing recreation; offering advice to clients and their families etc.

The project seized over 1000 seniors in different regions of Ukraine.

The seminar for regional managers of Home Care project was held on the 11th of March. There were two topics on the meeting agenda: “Characteristics of somatic and psychiatric disorders in palliative patients, behavior of personnel in situations of emergency conditions” and “Ethical aspects of communication with Home Care clients and their families”. Viktoria Kaganyak and Oksana Drobyk were invited as seminar trainers. They are qualified doctors who have been working with palliative patients for many years; they previously passed the internship in medical establishments abroad.

Directors of regional organizations of Caritas Ukraine joined the seminar for managers of Caritas social centers. Possibilities of Home Care support after the project will be finished was the hot-button issue for discussion. Social entrepreneurship in Ukraine and ways of state financial backing were also debated. Olesya Sanotska (civic organization «Oselia», Vynnyky) and Yuriy Lopatynskiy (social bakery «Pea’s house», Lviv) took part in the seminar. They have considerable experience in social entrepreneurship and are aware of numerous features of such work.

Moreover, Dzvenyslava Chaykivska, Iryna Maievska and Rostislav Kis‘, members of Caritas Ukraine lobby team, spoke about possibilities of state financial support for social services delivery; social integration of unprotected categories of population; legal mechanisms of social entrepreneurship; and success criteria for social enterprises.

For many years Home Care project was financed by various donors from Germany, France, and Austria etc. Since January 2012 it is being funded by the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future and Caritas Germany. At the end of 2012 the financial backing will run out. Regardless external experts’ high evaluation of Caritas Ukraine work on delivering social services to Ukrainian citizens, the state hasn’t found ways to provide financial support to such activities from the central budget.