Rapid access to essential assistive technology for internally displaced people in Ukraine (AT10): lessons learned report

The “Rapid access to essential assistive technology for internally displaced people in Ukraine (AT10)” project was a WHO initiative, in partnership with the Ukrainian Ministry of Health, that took place in Ukraine starting in 2022, with funding from ATscale and the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund.

Its aim was to establish rapid service delivery mechanisms to provide 10 products that assist mobility and self-care to support the population with existing or new assistive technology needs. A novel aspect of this project was that the provision of assistive technology was integrated in the emergency response. Service providers were trained to provide the 10 products using the WHO Training in Assistive Products programme.

As of 31 March 2023, in the first phase of the project, 2458 assistive products had been provided by 10 health facilities in five oblasts (regions) in eastern Ukraine, meeting the assistive technology needs of 1485 people affected by the war. Through a process that was well coordinated, timely, acceptable to service users and sensitive to the challenges of the local context, the AT10 project met the assistive technology needs of the population and facilitated rehabilitation, community participation and ultimately community development.

This report describes the lessons learned from this project and outlines recommended actions for future provision of assistive technology as part of the health emergency response.