Victor and Elena Pinchuk welcome fourth child

The family of Ukrainian businessman and art patron Victor Pinchuk is celebrating a new addition to the family. On 28th September 2011 Pinchuk’s wife Elena gave birth to a baby girl, whose name has not yet been announced.

She is the fourth child in the Pinchuk family, and their second one together. Their first child, Ekaterina, is eight years old. Twenty-year-old Roman is Elena’s son from her first marriage, and Mariya, 29, is from Pinchuk’s previous marriage.

Elena is the daughter of former president Leonid Kuchma, she founded the first and sole Ukrainian foundation to address HIV/AIDS epidemic, which is working at private expenses.

The list of Pinchuks activities in Ukraine is hard to exhaust. Apart from the economic forum for the world’s mighty in the Crimea, Pinchuk’s philanthropic venture “Victor Pinchuk Foundation” contributes significant donations to fight AIDs, supports talented youth and memoralize the Holocaust. Pinchuk also partners with the George Soros Fund on certain initiatives.

One of Victor’s most notable charity enterprises is the renowned Pinchuk Art Center in the center of Kyiv, which offers to the visitors world-class contemporary art free of charge. Pinchuk has has also sponsored the performances of legendary musicians Elton John in Kyiv in 2007 and Paul McCartney in 2008.

Another face of AIDS

While the total number of people infected with HIV/AIDS in Ukraine is about 1.5 percent of the population, you should multiply this figure by approximately 15 to determine the real incidence of this infection among risk groups. The abuse of injectable drugs and promiscuity (indiscriminate unprotected sex) even among children aged 10-12 are the main pillars of this statistical picture.

This is the opinion of experts from UNICEF and the international charity AIDS Foundation East- West (AFEW), who recently completed a study entitled “Children and Young People Living or Working on the Streets: the Missing Face of the HIV Epidemic in Ukraine.”

Rinat Akhmetov Foundation makes up-to-date TB diagnostics accessible for HIV-infected patients in Donetsk

Since August of 2011, Donetsk has been implementing a new project funded by Rinat Akhmetov Foundation "Development of Ukraine", aimed at introducing the most accurate and sensitive method of tuberculosis diagnostics in HIV infected patients free of charge. More than 30 patients from Donetsk and Donetsk region registered at Donetsk Regional AIDS Center and who receive treatment at the Regional Clinical TB Hospital, have undergone the so-called PCR diagnosis method (polymer chain reaction diagnostics). Mycobacteria tuberculosis were detected in 15% cases, and this method has facilitated the diagnosis and spared time to start treatment.

This method is currently the most efficient, but as well the most expensive - not everyone can afford the PCR diagnostics. At the same time, the main death reasons of HIV-infected people are delayed diagnosis, opportunistic infections, among them tuberculosis. Tuberculosis in HIV-positive is difficult to diagnose, because half of the cases are smear-negative (the main method for TB diagnosis is microscopy and bacteriology, i.e. the detection of tuberculosis bacteria in sputum). PCR method can identify the presence of TB bacteria isolated in the specimen.

Therefore, Rinat Akhmetov Foundation "Development of Ukraine", continuing the implementation of its ambitious program to address the TB epidemic in Donetsk region, have made a contract with private  laboratory in Donetsk, which has a quality certificate for TB diagnostics by PCR screening of HIV-infected patients. It is planned to extend the project till the next year, until the equipment for molecular genetic (PCR) methods for TB diagnostics is purchased for Regional Clinical Tuberculosis Hospital (scheduled for 2013).

Captain Of Doomed Hockey Team Was Secret Donor To Sick Children

A sad twist in the Yak-42 tragedy reveals that one of Lokomotiv players who died in the crash was anonymously giving money to sick kids, and the last half-million ruble payment was transferred to a young cancer patient minutes before the take-off.

It was several days ago that the parents of 16-year-old Diana Ibragimova from Voronezh learned the real name of the man who saved their daughter’s life. 

Ivan Tkachenko, captain of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl hockey club, was sending big sums of money to Voronezh without disclosing his name or expecting any gratitude at all, Lifenews online tabloid reports.

Diana’s mother burst into tears when she learned Ivan had died in a horrible accident. It took her a long time to understand that the man she knew nothing about, just that his name was Ivan, was in fact Ivan Tkachenko, captain of the famous Lokomotiv hockey club.

The hockey player’s secret was disclosed thanks to a well-known Russian blogger, Varfolomeev. In one of his latest posts he wrote that the athlete had regularly been transferring large sums of money to sick children. Diana was one of the several lucky children whom Ivan had patronized.

Ivan transferred money to Diana’s family twice, and both times he asked that his name not be indicated under any circumstances. 

“We did not even know who our daughter’s benefactor was, just his first name,” cried Elena, Diana’s mother. “We received 500,000-ruble transfers twice; they both came from an unknown Ivan. I thought he might be a successful businessman and could not imagine he was one of the best-known Russian hockey players. Such a young man!”exclaims Elena.

After the family received the second transfer, they wrote a letter to Ivan, but they never received an answer. Neither Diana nor her mother knew that just minutes after sending the money, Ivan Tkachenko died in a horrific plane crash not far from the city of Yaroslavl. 

The modest young hockey player did not like to talk about his philanthropy. Only his closest friends knew that Ivan helped children who were diagnosed with terrible diseases. 

“Vanya adored children,” one of Tkachenko’s friends recalled. “His wife is now expecting their third child.”

His relatives say Ivan always rushed to help when he saw a child needed his assistance.

“Ivan did not want anyone to know he was taking part in charity,” said the authorities at the Advita charity fund. “He did not want gratitude; he just helped kids and adults who were in need of his help. He saved many lives!” they added.

via RussiaToday

Ministry of Health, the National Academy of Sciences, MTS Ukraine, Rinat Akhmetov Charitable Foundation "Development of Ukraine" and DTEK have signed Memorandum of understanding about national telemedicine network

The Memorandum of understanding on further development of national telemedicine network was signed in the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
The memorandum envisages the consolidation of existing initiatives in the field of telemedicine by the Ministry of Health, the National Academy of Sciences, the company "MTS Ukraine", Rinat Akhmetov Charitable Foundation "Development of Ukraine" and DTEK power company.The aim of this collaboration is to increase the availability of specialized care for communtities in rayon  centers and residents of remote settlements in Ukraine by means of telecommunications technology.A wire telemedicine network is now being established by means of which the data transfer will be ensured. The project provides medical facilities with necessary equipment, which will gurantee transfer of medical data within computer network by means of special videoconferencing software. Network channels will be protected from unauthorized editing, printing and deletion.
Currently the network is already being used for regular medical consultations and remote participation in medical conferences. A solution is now developed that will allow midwife stations from rural areas joining to the telemedicine network .
By the end of 2011 9 medical facilities of regional and city level in Kiev, Lviv, Donetsk, Rivne and Ivano-Frankivsk region will have been involved into the telemedicine network.

Krasnoarmeysk gets new mobile ICUs

On 27.07.11 Krasnoarmeysk got new mobile ICUs. Two new mobile Ford ICUs and two new Gazel ambulance cars are waiting for new owners - specialists of Krasnoarmeysk central rayon hospital and Konstantinovka ambulance service. Boris Kolesnikov Charitable Foundation beared all expenses related to procurement and outfitting the vehicles.
Marina Dedenko, Director of B. Kolesnikov Foundation: Boris Kolesnikov has a system-based approach to charity, he would change something in order to prevent problems rather than just give money.
Total costs of all 4 fully equipped ICUs made UAH 2 400 000, but money is not the point, the most important thing is to help patients and make the doctors' work easier.
Denis Omelyanovich, MP: These ICUs transferred today will assist medical workers and will bring the quality of their to a higher level.
Those who faced at least once our ambulance services, know that sometimes obsolete ambulance cars arrive at call-outs, that cannot provide quality emergency services. 80% of all Krasnoarmeysk ambulance cars are older than 10 years, it goes without saying that the equipment is obsolete too. So, these vehicles are essential for the region.
Tatyana Volkova, Head Doctor of Krasnoarmeysk central rayon hospital: "These vehicles are up-to-date, with equipment we could have only dreamt of".
After the official part vehicles were blessed and the representative of the supplier gave a master-class of vehicle and equipment maintenance.

Speech of Rinat Akhmetov, President of the Foundation for Development of Ukraine at Press-Conference “Cancer Can Be Cured. Timely Cancer Diagnostics and Treatment in Ukraine”

Dear friends!

Thank you very much for having found the time and possibility to join us today to discuss the most urgent problem of oncology diseases.

Ukraine has registered 910,267 people with cancer at the moment. Every year adds another 160,000, with 90,000 dying of the disease.

It’s terrible. The question is what to do? The only possible answer is not to give up, fight, and prevail.

But what do we have to fight and to prevail? On the one hand, there are good and top-skilled doctors, on the other hand – limited technical capacities.

I think you are aware that cancer morbidity in Europe and the USA is higher compared to Ukraine, while the mortality is lower. Why? Because they invest much in early diagnostics and effective treatment.

I ask myself – how can I help? By investing big money in early diagnostics and effective treatment of cancer.

For this reason, I decided to provide $ 40m for fighting cancer with $20m to be allocated on  Donbass region, $10m – on the National Institute of Cancer, and another $10m – on Western Ukraine.

Thank you for your attention. 

see more about Rinat Akhmetov Foundation Program "Cancer Can Be Cured. Timely Cancer Diagnostics and Treatment in Ukraine"