More than 300 people have already received artificial joints free of charge in Mykolaiv

Residents of Mykolaiv can get a knee or hip joint free of charge, illustrative photo

Residents of Mykolaiv have a real opportunity to receive free hip and knee replacements.

This was announced live on Facebook by Irina Shamrai, Head of the Health Department of the Mykolaiv City Council.

«Today we have already installed more than 300 joints, so patients have a real opportunity to receive this service — both at the expense of the city budget and through centralised supplies. This year, about 90 joints have already been purchased, and prosthetics will be carried out in accordance with the electronic queue,» said Iryna Shamrai.

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"To get into the electronic queue, a patient has to visit his or her family doctor and get a referral to a traumatologist. After the necessary examinations, the doctor forms an electronic referral and adds the patient to the queue.

Three medical institutions of the city participate in the programme: City Hospital №3, City Hospital №5 and the Emergency Medical Care Hospital (EMC). They have the appropriate staffing, equipment and facilities to perform such operations.

The endoprosthetics programme in Mykolaiv has been in place since 2020 and is funded from the city budget. Additionally, in 2024, the city received joints as part of the centralised supply from the Ministry of Health. In case of an emergency, a patient can also have a joint fitted without first having to wait in line.

In 2024, Mykolaiv received 61 joints, the first centralised supply in seven years. The second source is the city's endoprosthetics programme, adopted in 2020. Since then, more than 300 patients have received endoprostheses, 73 of which are knee joints. This year, about 90 hip and knee joints have been purchased.

«Appointments are made exclusively through an electronic queue. To do this, a patient visits his or her family doctor and receives an electronic referral to a traumatologist. The doctor conducts all the necessary examinations and adds the patient to the queue,» said Iryna Shamrai.

She also emphasised: «In case of an acute injury that requires urgent arthroplasty, the examination is carried out in a hospital. In this case, the operation is performed regardless of the presence or absence of the patient in the electronic queue».

In March 2024, Iryna Shamrai, head of the health department of the Mykolaiv City Council, reported that another rehabilitation unit may be opened at a hospital in Mykolaiv, where military personnel will be able to use prosthetics services free of charge. Similar departments have already been opened at Mykolaiv City Hospitals 4 and 5.

As a reminder, the Mykolaiv City Health Department says it will launch a prosthetic and orthotic workshop in autumn 2025.

Previously, it was expected that the prosthetics centre would be able to produce up to 40 prostheses per month.