Ukrainian transplantologists undergo training in leading clinics in the USA

Ukrainian transplantologists, with the support of the Peace and Development Foundation and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, are once again undergoing training in leading clinics in the United States.

With the assistance of the organization Help Ukraine Group, led by Professor Natalia Kovalchuk, the team has started training in heart and lung transplantation at one of the world's most renowned hospitals — the Stanford University Medical Center in Palo Alto, California. The facility is a global leader in transplantology, having pioneered heart transplantation techniques in the 1960s and experimentally proven the feasibility of heart transplants. 

Doctors worldwide come here to gain experience and enhance their qualifications. Over the first week, the Ukrainian medical team participated in five heart and lung transplantations. They observed postoperative care for patients after complex heart and lung transplants and took part in lung transplant procedures.

The team continued their training at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. According to local statistics, this hospital performs the most heart transplants globally and conducts numerous lung, liver, and other organ transplants.

Last year, Ukrainian medical professionals studied the experience, and now they are participating in multi-organ organ retrievals, familiarizing themselves with the details of organ transplantation.

The acquired knowledge will be implemented in Ukraine, where approximately 5,000 citizens need organ transplants. The demand for qualified professionals with the necessary experience in performing such operations remains high.

The continuous professional development of doctors is critically important for Ukraine. 

"In 2020, when we began actively developing the transplant system in Ukraine, 30 organ transplants from deceased donors were performed. In 2023, this number has increased tenfold to 302 in just ten months," says Vasil Strilka, Head of the Department of High-Tech Medical Care and Innovations at the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. "To reach the levels of leading countries, we need to improve results by ten times from the current ones. This can be achieved if our doctors learn from the experience of the world's best specialists, a dream that was once considered impossible."

Strilka added that the entire civilized world, thanks to the heroism of defenders, supports Ukraine in every possible way, including in the development of medicine. Ukrainian doctors are welcomed for training by the best medical institutions globally, including clinics in Nashville, Harvard, and Stanford.

"In turn, we appreciate, accept, and implement this assistance to build a high-quality healthcare system worthy of our defenders," Strilka said.

Trips for knowledge exchange with American partners have become part of the systematic work of the Ministry of Health and the Peace and Development Foundation. Productive cooperation is also developing in various medical fields, including oncology, reconstructive surgery, family medicine, and transplantation.