Tectonic Changes in Ukraine’s O&P Industry

Though the capability for manufacturing and fitting prostheses has developed throughout Ukraine’s history, it gained new, rapid momentum due to the full-scale invasion of the country. When the invasion led to thousands of amputations, prosthetics specialists in Ukraine were forced to find relatively quick, effective, and creative solutions to meet the needs of an unusually large number of new patients.

It became common for prosthetics schools to be set up on the move and for prosthetists to be trained in two weeks. This was, at best, a temporary solution. In most developed countries, O&P specialists who work directly with patients to determine the parameters of an assistive rehabilitation device must complete higher education (currently a master’s degree is the general standard) and pass additional independent exams to practice in the specialty. Only those centers that have such specialists can carry out the relevant activities. This ensures that patients are treated by professionals and that their interests are protected. So the question of where to get such professionals in Ukraine arose.