Every healthcare facility understands the needs of its patients and medical teams better than anyone else. However, between a hospital's request and the actual delivery of equipment or medicines lies a comprehensive process that determines how effectively resources are used, how transparent procurement remains, and, ultimately, how the quality of healthcare is improved.

For ZDOROVI, procurement is not simply an administrative procedure. It is a strategic tool for strengthening the capacity of healthcare institutions. Every procurement decision is therefore based on needs assessments, evidence, and a clear understanding of its potential impact on Ukraine's healthcare system.

Within the TERA Consortium, each procurement follows several interconnected stages—from identifying needs to monitoring results after delivery.

Step One: Assessing and Verifying Needs

Procurement does not begin with tender documents. It begins with understanding what hospitals genuinely need.

The ZDOROVI team collects requests from healthcare facilities and works closely with regional health departments, medical experts, and partners to develop an objective picture of community needs.

The assessment takes into account a range of factors, including the hospital's profile and workforce, departmental workload, patient statistics, service packages, patient volumes, and the additional challenges created by the ongoing war.

Each request undergoes an additional verification process. The team evaluates its relevance, potential impact on the quality of healthcare, and cross-checks the information with data from the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, the National Health Service of Ukraine, and other available sources.

This approach ensures that decisions are driven by verified evidence rather than assumptions, allowing resources to be directed where they can have the greatest impact.

As part of the project, 17 healthcare facilities across seven regions of Ukraine—Donetsk, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Chernihiv, and Mykolaiv oblasts—will receive support.

From Identified Needs to Technical Specifications

Once the list of priority needs has been approved, the preparation of procurement documentation begins.

Working alongside technical experts, ZDOROVI develops detailed technical specifications that define the functional requirements for medical equipment or pharmaceutical products.

Importantly, these specifications do not refer to specific manufacturers or brands. Instead, they focus exclusively on the technical characteristics required to deliver high-quality healthcare services.

Well-designed technical specifications:

• ensure fair competition;
• prevent the procurement of products that do not meet actual healthcare needs;
• guarantee the quality of medical equipment, medicines, and supplies.

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Procurement as a Driver of Systemic Change

Effective humanitarian assistance does not begin in a warehouse or with a procurement procedure.

It begins with a clear understanding of the real needs of healthcare facilities and is only complete when the delivered equipment and medicines are improving patient care.

By combining robust needs assessments, transparent procurement procedures, close collaboration with healthcare institutions, and continuous monitoring, resources are transformed into lasting improvements for Ukraine's healthcare system.

For ZDOROVI, procurement is far more than a mechanism for delivering humanitarian aid—it is one of the key instruments for strengthening the resilience of Ukraine's healthcare system, particularly in the face of prolonged humanitarian challenges.

This project is implemented within the activities of the TERA Consortium with financial support from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund (UHF). The TERA Consortium was established by the Team4UA Charitable Foundation.