Healthcare reform in Mykolaiv: the city council has backed the merger of four hospitals
- News of Mykolaiv
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- Alina Kvitko
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13:11, 09 April, 2026
In Mykolaiv, four hospitals are to be merged into a single cluster, whilst Maternity Hospital №3 will be transferred to the regional authorities. Photo: NikVestiMembers of Mykolaiv City Council have backed a decision to reorganise the city’s healthcare network, which involves creating a cluster hospital and transferring one of the maternity hospitals to the region’s ownership.
The decision was taken at a session of the Mykolaiv City Council on Thursday, 9 April, according to NikVesti.
Hanna Nord, chair of the city council’s humanitarian committee, reported that the issue of merging hospitals has been under discussion for about a year. According to her, previously medical facilities could operate under the old funding system, but now the city must move towards forming a unified hospital network.
«The decision has effectively come to fruition. It could have been adopted earlier, but the institutions were given the opportunity to finalise their preparations. Now is precisely the moment to secure contracts for next year (...) We are currently discussing the merger of four hospitals in the Central District into a single entity, which will be able to join a capable network as a cluster. This will allow us to implement the changes in an organised manner without losing the services currently available. First and foremost, this concerns obstetric-gynaecological and surgical packages at the children’s hospital, as well as other services. Therefore, this is a considered and correct decision that will allow us to preserve the hospitals and doctors and expand funding opportunities,» said Hanna Nord.
She also reported that the reorganisation is planned to take place in two stages. The first involves «extended restructuring», which will make it possible to avoid additional expenditure from the city budget on salary compensation during the reorganisation. The second stage will include the approval of the new charter for the merged institution.
«We are now launching the extended restructuring period. This will allow us to save on wages that would have had to be compensated had we carried out a one-off, immediate reorganisation. In that case, we would have had to pay salaries to employees of the merging institutions for the entire duration of the reorganisation — either at the expense of the institution they are joining, through financial assistance, or from the city budget. The process we are launching now allows these costs to be reimbursed by the National Health Service of Ukraine in the future. For two months, the institutions will be funded as before.
In the second stage, we will draft and approve the charter and plan to submit it to the council within a month. In it, we will propose a model for the operation of the new cluster institution, where four hospitals will effectively operate on a self-financing basis within a single legal entity. This will allow them to develop effectively, maintain their services and foster internal competition,» said Hanna Nord.
In accordance with the decision adopted, City Hospitals №1 and №2 and the Emergency Medical Care Hospital (EMCH) will be merged with City Hospital №4.
In addition, councillors approved the transfer of Maternity Hospital №3 to the ownership of the region. The facility is planned to be merged with the Regional Clinical Hospital, which is located nearby.
According to him, the facility does not have a sufficient number of births and is operating at a loss, and the city is forced to constantly spend funds on its maintenance.
«The third maternity hospital, located in the Namiv neighbourhood, will be merged with the regional clinical hospital situated opposite. In effect, this will enable it to survive under the new healthcare reform. Today, the facility does not have a sufficient number of births, is effectively operating at a loss, and we are forced to subsidise it from the budget. At the same time, the Mykolaiv city council has already invested significant funds there — tens, even hundreds of millions of hryvnias on equipment and repairs. The project is currently underway: a plan for the refurbishment of the premises has been drawn up in collaboration with foreign partners,» said the mayor.
The mayor also emphasised that the reorganisation does not involve any reduction in medical staff or a decrease in the range of services for residents.
«For us, the priority is to retain the team. That is precisely why we are transferring this property complex and integrating it as a department into the regional clinical hospital — to keep the staff. As part of the reorganisation, we are working towards ensuring that all healthcare facilities in the city are adapted to the requirements of the reform and receive funding through contracts with the National Health Service of Ukraine. This will enable us to pay salaries, retain staff, purchase medicines and provide care to people,» said Oleksandr Sienkevych.
Earlier, members of the Mykolaiv City Council’s specialised health committee supported the reorganisation of the city’s hospitals. Also, Mykolaiv City Council member Olena Kiseliova reported that the reorganisation of Mykolaiv’s hospitals by merging them into a single structure would not lead to hospital closures or staff cuts, but is merely a change in legal form to secure additional funding from the National Health Service of Ukraine.
The NGO “Mykolaiv Media Hub” (online media outlet NikVesti) wishes to acknowledge the financial assistance of the European Union through its project “Frontline and Investigative Reporting Media in Ukraine” (FAIR Media Ukraine), implemented by Internews International in partnership with the Media Development Foundation (MDF). The NGO “Mykolaiv Media Hub” (online media outlet NikVesti) retains full editorial independence, and the information presented here does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, Internews International, or MDF.
