Northwell Health Provides Telemedicine to Ukraine

Access to healthcare during wartime for a civilian can be immensely difficult. Conflict impedes civilian access to medicine, overwhelms hospital capacities, and disrupts supply chains for medical equipment. In Ukraine, this has meant that thousands of civilians have had to survive without basic healthcare since February, leaving many with unattended health issues.

However, technology provides a possible solution to this issue, through the usage of telemedicine. Telemedicine allows for doctor appointments to be conducted online, and even with doctors in other countries. Patients can be diagnosed and treated online without having to navigate the difficulties of accessing medicine in conflict regions, and without exacerbating the capacity issues in hospitals.

UMC has been working with Northwell Health, a healthcare non-profit based in New York, to provide telemedicine to Ukraine. The service provides 24/7 access to healthcare consultations through computers, phones, and tablets. Ukrainian doctors and physicians, especially newly enlisted healthcare providers, can also confer with Northwell’s medical specialists for advice on how to respond to medical situations.

Northwell’s telemedicine service for Ukraine was made possible through a partnership between Northwell Health and UMC, working with Dr. Eric Cioe-Pena, MD, our Board Member and the Director for the Center of Global Health at Northwell Health. The service has already supported and aided numerous Ukrainian patients and healthcare providers.