The architectural inaccessibility of medical institutions, in particular, gynecological offices, remains an actual problem for women with disabilities. In the 2019 study “Human Rights of Women and Girls with Disabilities, a Brief Guide to Intersectional Approaches to Implementation of the CEDAW and CRPD Conventions in Ukraine”, it was noted that 76% of women with disabilities do not have the opportunity to visit a gynecologist due to the architectural inaccessibility of hospitals.
To solve existing problems, representatives of public organizations, local self-government bodies and international partners unite and create joint projects. One of these is the project “Gynecological Office with Barrier-free Access”.
It was created to overcome the challenges of architectural inaccessibility and reduce inequality in the provision of health services for women in difficult life circumstances. That is why new gynecological offices with barrier-free access were opened in twenty regions of Ukraine. Local women or IDP women who were forced to move to other regions because of the war in Ukraine and who suffered from gender-based violence, will be able to receive qualified medical and psychological assistance there. Such offices were created on the basis of reception and gynecological departments, women’s consultations of regional, district or local hospitals, city perinatal centers. Modern medical equipment was purchased to take into account the needs of people with disabilities. If necessary, women can also get confidential and free medical and psychological help around the clock.
Such offices were also opened in the Zaporizhzhia region. We asked Kateryna Kysko, coordinator of the information campaign of the project, about how the offices will work and for what purpose they were created. Kateryna herself is a migrant from Donetsk, who has been in Zaporizhzhia since 2014. She is a photographer, creates charitable projects for servicemen and their families, and also works as a manager in the team of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Public Organization Association of Psychologists and Psychoanalysts “VZAYEMODIYA”.