Ukraine's UNBROKEN: Atrium Health Carolinas Rehabilitation, which is a part of Advocate Health, announced the signing of a memorandum of agreement with National Rehabilitation Center UNBROKEN, a rehabilitation organization in Ukraine. This partnership aims to provide specialized education and training to enhance Ukraine's rehabilitation workforce, addressing the urgent need for rehabilitation services in a region affected by war.
The partnership will involve hosting clinicians from Ukraine in Charlotte for a series of visits in 2025 to learn about clinical services, education and training, and research. It is part of Atrium Health’s Global Health Care program, which connects international partners with experts within the organization to share best practices, develop innovative care solutions and improve clinical outcomes in communities all over the world.
Carolinas Rehabilitation is uniquely positioned to help Ukraine expand its rehabilitation workforce and improve the quality of specialized education and training. As the first and only rehabilitation hospital in the United States selected by the World Health Organization to serve on the World Rehabilitation Alliance, Carolinas Rehabilitation is committed to enhancing the global rehabilitation workforce and improving access to rehabilitation during emergencies and disasters around the world.
"We are honored to collaborate with UNBROKEN to provide much-needed rehabilitation expertise," said Robert Larrison, group vice president, Atrium Health Rehabilitation Network and Atrium Health Carolinas Rehabilitation. "We want to extend our knowledge, expertise and resources to others who can benefit, and we often learn as much as we teach when we participate in these kinds of exchanges."
Prior to the war, the rehabilitation sector in Ukraine faced significant challenges, including a shortage of qualified specialists, structured methodologies and standardized protocols. In response to the increasing number of critically injured patients arriving in Lviv from the frontlines, Ukraine established the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Center, along with additional rehabilitation units across all hospitals within the First Lviv Territorial Medical Union. Over the past two years, it has expanded the country’s rehabilitation capacity from 26 beds to 260. Despite this progress, the complexity of their patients’ needs requires cutting-edge expertise and additional training.
"Rehabilitation is founded on the essential relationship between patient and therapist,” said Ihor Koshivka, head of rehabilitation at the First Lviv Territorial Medical Union. “Our mission is to provide our patients with the highest standard of care by ensuring our specialists are leaders in their field. Atrium Health’s support in training our professionals is key to achieving this. We are committed to advancing our rehabilitation system to become one of the most innovative, and this memorandum is a crucial step toward that goal."
During the series of visits, UNBROKEN’s rehabilitation clinicians and Carolinas Rehabilitation team will exchange information about topics such as patient safety, clinical strategies and pathways, workforce planning, training opportunities, teaching techniques, employee engagement and professional development, research strategy, stakeholder engagement and collaborative research opportunities.
Atrium Health Carolinas Rehabilitation was recently recognized as the No. 7 rehabilitation hospital in the U.S. by U.S. News and World Report. In recent years, it has begun expanding its outreach and impact internationally, beginning with the establishment of its first-ever global partnership with Qatar Rehabilitation Institute (QRI) , in Doha, Qatar, in 2022. Carolinas Rehabilitation is helping it meet the qualifications for accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF®), which ultimately helps rehabilitation service providers meet international standards for quality. Newswise/SP
