WHO is strengthening Ukraine’s blood service by investing in laboratory capacity, biosafety, quality management systems and the professional development of laboratory specialists across the country. To help standardize the processing of donated blood, WHO has provided modern blood bank centrifuges to 17 regional blood centres. Also, WHO is supporting the launch and future operation of Ukraine’s National Reference Laboratory, contributing to improving national health security.
With financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), WHO is helping Ukraine maintain safe and essential blood services under the continued pressures of war, while also strengthening the foundations of a modern and resilient blood system, aligned with international standards.
“The number of surgical interventions has increased, as has the number of critically ill patients with polytrauma. All these patients are transfusion dependent. As a result, our need for blood donors is constantly growing and the workload for our centre is immense”, explains Dmytro Peretiatko, head of the Blood Services Center at the National Children's Specialized Hospital, Okhmatdyt.
Building the National Reference Laboratory
Ukraine’s blood service laboratories face significant challenges as a result of attacks on critical health and civilian infrastructure, increased workloads and the need to maintain essential services during emergencies.
The National Reference Laboratory of the Blood Service of Ukraine in Vinnytsia, which is under development, has received equipment and consumables for confirmatory testing, including a fully automated, high-throughput blood screening platform designed specifically for blood donor laboratories. The system integrates key stages of the testing workflow, from sample pooling and preparation through to PCR testing, into a single platform.
Strengthening the National Reference Laboratory is an important element of Ukraine’s ongoing European integration efforts.
Ensuring access to safe blood
WHO is investing in laboratory quality management systems, improving biosafety practices and helping laboratory professionals maintain reliable services even under challenging conditions. As part of this cooperation, WHO has provided essential reagents to the blood centre in the Ternopil region to ensure that testing for hepatitis B and C, HIV, and syphilis can continue for the coming 6 months.
In response to a request from Ukraine’s Ministry of Health, WHO has also provided blood collection containers to all 24 regional blood centres, together with biosafety supplies that can support operations over the coming years. These supplies ensure that donated blood and blood components can be safely collected, tested and prepared for transfusion.
Strengthening laboratory specialists’ skills to improve blood safety
WHO has supported the professional development of laboratory specialists across Ukraine through a comprehensive training programme covering PCR testing, biosafety and laboratory quality management. More than 1500 specialists have participated, including staff from all blood centres, centres for disease control and prevention, and a number of hospitals involved in blood transfusion.
Among the training participants were specialists who work with donor blood daily. They gained hands-on experience in the screening for transfusion-transmissible infections, strengthening laboratory quality management, and biosafety and biosecurity skills.
During the biosafety training sessions, participants not only refreshed their knowledge but also honed practical skills. Specifically, they worked on risk assessment, discussed laboratory requirements, and learned how to perform disinfection and decontamination, undertake waste management, use personal protective equipment, and operate laboratory equipment safely.
Beyond training, WHO has supported four oblast blood establishments in preparing their laboratories for accreditation in accordance with the ISO 15189 standard. This support helps laboratories work towards international requirements for quality and competence.
Investing in Ukraine’s long-term health security
The cooperation between WHO and Sida goes beyond the provision of equipment and supplies. It is helping Ukraine strengthen the system and skills needed to ensure that blood services remain safe.
By strengthening laboratory quality management, biosafety, testing capacity and the professional skills of laboratory specialists, the programme is contributing both to the immediate continuity of essential blood services and to the longer-term development of Ukraine’s health system.