 When we think of a healthcare facility, we generally envision just the physical needs being cared for among the patients. At the new medical facility in Ukraine where HCJB Global Hands plays an integral part, much more is being accomplished behind the scenes.
Under construction for four years, the Health, Rehabilitation and Training Center (HRTC), just outside Kiev, now has a finished first floor and nearly finished second floor after various U.S. work teams gave time and money for the project. It is the first nongovernmental healthcare center to be built in Ukraine.
Nothing seems to come easily for Dr. Irina Vlasenko and her small staff. Between complicated permit processes that are always subject to change and the constant devaluation of their currency, they meet with insurmountable odds on a constant basis. Even the threat of gas shutoff by the Russian government this winter didn’t deter Dr. Irina and her staff. Her constant request to the West is, “Please hold us up in prayer.”
The center did a two-week test run of volunteer “patients” through their sponsoring church.  Twelve Christians, ranging in age from 54 to 91, with different ailments came and stayed at the center during the test period. Most of them had been housebound and extremely isolated for years.
The medical staff described the patients’ initial reaction as “scared.” The elderly had been cut off from others for so long they didn’t know how to react to the caring atmosphere that had been offered to them at the center. After a few days, many of the patients began to cry and thank God that they had been permitted to come there for help.
During the testing period Dr. Irina and her volunteer staff worked through all the logistics of meals, medical needs, vocational and physical rehabilitation, socializing, and holding programs for the spiritual growth of patients. In a later report, she commented, “it was a time of being very tired and yet such an exciting time.”
Additional activities at the medical center include renting out rooms that would ordinarily not be used on a daily basis. The staff has hosted a rehabilitation leaders’ conference at the center as well as the week-long “School of Christ” conference. By renting out meeting rooms and providing simple luncheons, the center helps offset the ongoing operational expenses.
 The center’s soup kitchen ministry also continues three times a week. In addition, the facilities are used for Sunday school classes when teachers are available. Organizers hope to gain interest from the various mission agencies in Kiev to provide teachers and students to help with Sunday worship services.
With financial help from abroad, Ukrainian Christians are reaching their own people for Christ. Although it’s been a long time coming to fruition, Dr. Irina knows that God has provided all along the way in His time.
A recent 78-year-old patient, Zinaida Bondar, said it best after her stay at the center. “I thank the Lord that there is such a place where one can have rehabilitation. Praise the Lord!”
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