September 15, 2025
News
Over 70% of Ukrainians officially need psychological care because of the war. In 2025, Caritas Czech Republic joined a nationwide mental health programme in four regions of the country. We are helping to set up Mental Health Centres at hospitals, to provide children and adults with free and high-quality psychological care. On September 10, one of the centres launched in Novoyavorivsk, Lviv region.
Decent conditions for mental well-being
Years of occupation, constant rocket and drone attacks, the loss of loved ones, destruction of property and forced displacement - these and many other traumatic factors make Ukrainians vulnerable to mental disorders. According to surveys, 71% of respondents experience stress or severe anxiety, and almost two-thirds fear for the safety of their relatives.
However, people in Ukraine are not used to talking about mental health issues or seeking professional help. To foster a culture of mental health care and make expert assistance available to everyone, the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the National Health Service of Ukraine, is developing a network of mental health centres at multidisciplinary hospitals. This is one of the components of the All-Ukrainian Mental Health Programme ‘TY YAK?’ (How are you?), initiated by First Lady Olena Zelenska. It aims to establish around 200 centres across the country.
These should be separate, cosy, safe spaces where a team of psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychotherapists diagnose, treat and provide social assistance to children and adults with mental disorders. These services are available for free as part of the state medical guarantee programme. Each region and community develops a plan for building up specialised mental health care.
Caritas Czech Republic's contribution to sustainable communities
In spring 2025, Caritas Czech Republic joined the implementation of the Regional Mental Health Care Plan in the Lviv region. With the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, we carried out a major renovation and refurbishment of the Mental Health Centre at the Yuriy Lypa Hospital in Novoyavorivsk.
In cooperation with the regional coordinator of the ‘‘How Are You?’’ programme, as well as the Lviv Regional State Administration, the Lviv Regional Council, and the Novoyavorivsk City Council, we completely renovated the hospital premises allocated for the Centre in accordance with the requirements and standards of the Ministry of Health.
There are new cabinets of psychiatrists, psychotherapists, clinical psychologists, group and individual therapy rooms, as well as a day hospital and a psychological relief room. The furniture was provided by the Ukrainian-Swiss project Mental Health for Ukraine – MH4U.
Thanks to joint efforts, more than 54,000 residents of the Novoyavorivsk community will receive high-quality, specialised mental health care in decent conditions.
"We are delighted to be part of this essential project, which helps to care for people's mental well-being during wartime. Our team, together with our partners, has made every effort to ensure that this space is cosy and comfortable for doctors and visitors. We have taken into account the needs of people with reduced mobility and made the premises as convenient as possible for them. We hope that the Mental Health Centre in Novoyavorivsk will become a place of care and resilience for the community," shared Jana Markiv, project manager at Caritas Czech Republic.
According to Andriy Rodych, director of the Yuriy Lypa Hospital in Novoyavorivsk, most complaints are related to anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, sleep disorders, and chronic fatigue, which is why timely mental health care becomes extremely important.
"The Mental Health Centre is a high-quality project aimed at protecting the mental health of the residents of Novoyavorivsk, internally displaced persons, parents and children of our defenders, as well as the soldiers. Returning from war after being wounded, they need not only physical but also mental rehabilitation, which we are now able to provide in good conditions," said the director of the Novoyavorivsk hospital.
A major step towards qualitative changes across the country
On September 10, the Consul General of the Czech Republic in Lviv, Irdzi Borcel, attended the official opening of the Mental Health Centre in Novoyavorivsk. He noted that helping Ukraine remains a priority for the Czech Republic.
“It is an honour for me to participate in the opening of the Mental Health Centre, implemented by the non-governmental organisation Caritas Czech Republic together with local partners and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic. Helping Ukraine in the context of Russian aggression is one of the priorities of the Czech Republic's foreign policy,” said Mr Borcel.
Present at the opening, Evžen Diviš, Regional Manager of the Department of Humanitarian Aid and Development Cooperation at Caritas Czech Republic, expressed his gratitude to the partners and wished the hospital and Mental Health Centre team productive and high-quality work.
“We hope that our small contribution will have a positive impact on the whole country,” said Evžen Diviš.
In response, Novoyavorivsk Mayor Volodymyr Matselyukh expressed his gratitude on behalf of the community and noted that the opening of the Mental Health Centre was an important step towards providing improved mental health care for residents.
Caritas Czech Republic in Ukraine
Caritas Czech Republic has been helping Ukrainian families since the beginning of the war. In addition to providing much-needed humanitarian aid, we provide shelter to internally displaced people in modular houses in western Ukraine. We are also improving living conditions in dormitories. We keep on providing the most vulnerable people with decent living conditions.
In western Ukraine, we support Ukrainians who have decided to stand on their own feet after evacuating from the war zone. Through mini-grants, we assist the restoration of livelihoods for people in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, and the Transcarpathian region.
In eastern Ukraine, we improve the accessibility and quality of rehabilitation and reproductive medicine by modernising hospitals and educating staff.
Since 2025, in cooperation with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, we have been involved in setting up a network of Mental Health Centres in 4 regions: Dnipro, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Transcarpathia. In addition to Novoyavorivsk, Caritas Czech Republic is renovating and equipping centres in Ivano-Frankivsk, Mukachevo and Dnipro. We are also funding the reconstruction of the Resilience Centre in Truskavets.
In the Dnipro region, Caritas Czech Republic supports Ukrainian educational institutions near the frontline by creating safe educational spaces, providing equipment, and funding psychological consultations and additional classes to help children catch up on their educational gaps.
In southern Ukraine, we are now working with partners to restore the water supply in affected areas and set up mobile medical centres.
