Covering an area of less than 13,000 square miles between Ukraine and Romania, Moldova is on the frontline of the Ukrainian refugee crisis. In 2022, the Mérieux Foundation decided to support a two-pronged intervention: immediate back-up, followed by structural support for the healthcare reforms undertaken by the Moldovan Ministry of Health.

Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many Ukrainians fleeing the conflict have sought shelter in neighboring Moldova, as an intermediate step before moving on to a European Union country. Such an influx of refugees, today making up 16% of the country’s total population, is exerting considerable strain on the Moldovan healthcare system. Although the first wave of arrivals was mainly made up of individuals able to manage their own journey, subsequent waves have seen an increasing number of individuals needing healthcare before continuing their journey. This presents a real challenge for the Moldovan government.

Following the first exploratory mission in March 2022 during which the Foundation met the key parties involved in the healthcare system, several needs were identified:

• Immediate humanitarian needs, such as the refurbishment of a refugee reception center or the supply of IV bags for hospitals.
• The need to support laboratories so that they can absorb the requirements created by the influx of refugees and, over a longer-term period and as part of the implementation of healthcare system reforms, to support the reform of the laboratory system. To this end, the Foundation is assisting the Ministry of Health by focusing on renovating the laboratory at the main hospital for infectious diseases and ensuring its integration into the university hospital system, and by strengthening the laboratory system.

Providing emergency humanitarian aid

Emergency medical aid – March 2022

In order to assist the Ministry of Health in providing healthcare to refugee populations, the Foundation participated in two emergency operations:

• Support for the humanitarian convoy of the NGO Pharmacie Humanitaire Internationale to transport medical equipment to the Republican Hospital of Chisinau (oxygen therapy equipment and ventilators, generators) and to the Carpineni refugee reception center (hygiene and baby food products, and medicines).
• Supply of IV bags (16,000 bags purchased in partnership with Pharmacie Humanitaire Internationale) at the request of the Moldovan Ministry of Health​.
  The transport costs were covered by the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region.

Support for the Carpineni reception center for Ukrainian refugees – April 2022

The Mérieux Foundation funded the installation of shower facilities in the Carpineni refugee reception center, located around 60 miles south of the Moldovan capital of Chisinau. With a capacity to accommodate 180 individuals, the building has mainly housed women and children since the start of the conflict but did not have any showers or hot water. The work, which was completed in April, resulted in the installation of six shower rooms and the purchase of equipment to access hot water, in order to house the refugee population in acceptable sanitary conditions.

Financial support for the Dacia association – December 2022

The Foundation provided financial aid to the NGO Dacia, which has been strongly committed to housing refugees since the start of the war in Ukraine. This support was granted to ensure the running of the association over the winter period. The increase in the price of gas would have forced Dacia to close its doors to the public, as it was unable to pay the heating bills for the building. Over 400 people benefit from the association’s support.

Strengthening the laboratory system

Support for the Moldovan Ministry of Health in strengthening the national laboratory system was developed in two stages:

• The reinforcement of a key laboratory in order to upgrade the technical facilities and improve the capabilities and quality of biological diagnosis, in particular with regard to the needs and risks linked to the refugee crisis.
• The provision of technical assistance in terms of laboratories to the Ministry of Health as part of reforms to the Moldovan healthcare system.

Refurbishment of a microbiology laboratory – work beginning in 2023

The refurbishment of the microbiology laboratory at the Toma Ciorba Hospital for Infectious Diseases was the first step in meeting the need to improve the quality of diagnosis and to take on a greater volume of analyses. This new facility will also provide students at the Nicolae Testemitanu University of Medicine and Pharmacy with a modern training and research platform in clinical microbiology. The Foundation is providing its expertise as an assistant to the contracting authority for the design and monitoring of refurbishment work on the building that will house the laboratory. It is also providing the equipment for the facility and taking care of staff training with the aim of obtaining the ISO 15189 international accreditation that applies to medical biology laboratories.

Technical support to reform the laboratory system

In accordance with the need expressed by the Moldovan Minister of Health, Ala Nemerenco, the Mérieux Foundation will provide support to reform the laboratory system, identified by local experts as the weak link in the Moldovan healthcare system. Through this intervention, the Foundation will assist local parties concerned to gain a better perspective and understanding of other systems and the different potential organizational scenarios. This will make it possible to select the most suitable option and to optimize the laboratory service offering to meet the needs of the population and public health, while guaranteeing an optimal level of quality, biosafety and biosecurity. Particular attention will be paid to certain aspects brought to the attention of the Foundation’s teams, such as the referencing system and antimicrobial resistance.