UKRAINE
Public Health Centre of Ukraine (UPHC) is responsible for controlling the sanitary and epidemic situation in the country, prevent diseases, fight against epidemics, increase life expectancy, and improve the health of citizens. In the frame of health care reform in Ukraine the focus has been shifted to health promotion and diseases prevention. Besides designing public health campaigns, UPHC conducts epidemiological research, mainly through its department of Behavioural Risk Factors. This department investigates the prevalence of cancer risk factors addressed in PIECES, including tobacco and alcohol consumption, low physical activity, and an unbalanced diet. Ukraine is currently deploying regional disease control and prevention centres aimed at delivering campaigns for the prevention of non-communicable diseases covering all country regions. Therefore, interventions implemented in the context of the PIECES project are expected to benefit the entire 35 million population.
Cancer-related risk factors in their portfolio include: (a) Tobacco prevention and control: a Comprehensive Anti-Tobacco Law in 2021100 that provided a ban on advertising electronic smoking devices and new information campaigns aimed to eradicate secondary tobacco and nicotine emissions in all public spaces and workplaces, expecting to reach 500,000 tobacco users.101 (b) HPV prevention and control: wEBPnars to raise awareness among the general public and distance courses for doctors102 Also, actions will be implemented to increase awareness of children, parents, guardians, medical professionals, and regional and national decision-makers about HPV vaccines, based on information from multiple sources. (c) Alcohol use: UPHC is implementing evidence-based interventions103, strategies and training programmes addressed to the general population or specific target groups, as well as bans and sales control at the community level and other evidence-based interventions,104 expected to cover nearly 10 million of the country’s population. Monitoring of effectiveness and development of sustainability plans will follow.