Ukraine is facing extraordinary challenges to its health system amidst the Russian invasion, including attacks on Ukrainian medical facilities and infrastructure. To restore and maintain critical health services to Ukraine’s dispersed population, the Ministry of Health is strengthening its capacity to offer medical consultations via telemedicine. This two-page Progress Update describes LHSS technical assistance for the effort and results as of January 2023.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused many doctors to leave the country, compromised patients’ safety when seeking care, and displaced large portions of the population away from their primary health care providers. A strong national telemedicine system will be key to assuring access to health services for Ukrainians, now and in the future. Experiences from other conflict/disaster areas may provide insights, helping Ukraine assess and implement its own telemedicine response.

Ukraine prioritizes telemedicine as part of its comprehensive health reform to increase transparency of health service provision, expand access to quality health services, and enhance efficiency in the health sector.

The Social Protection Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Mechanism in Cambodia contributes to reducing poverty, vulnerability, and inequality by promoting and enhancing the effectiveness of the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy Framework (NSPPF). 

This report describes key private sector players and their types of engagement in malaria programming in Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Uganda.

Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) is a global priority and a keystone element of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. However, COVID-19 is causing serious impacts on tax revenue and many countries are facing constraints to new investment in health. To advance UHC progress, countries can also focus on improving health system technical efficiency to maximize the service outputs given the current health financing levels.