The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) with the financial support of the European Union made a significant donation to improve the perinatal care system in the Republic of Moldova. The donation includes 9 new Type A ambulances, equipped with high-performance equipment, for the planned transport of patients from district maternity hospitals to hospitals in Chișinău.

The ambulances were delivered by UNFPA Moldova to the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Moldova and distributed to the perinatal centers of the following institutions: Mother and Child Institute, Municipal Clinical Hospital No. 1 „Gheorghe Paladi” in Chișinău, Bălți Clinical Hospital, Edineț District Hospital, Căușeni District Hospital, Ungheni District Hospital, Orhei District Hospital, Soroca District Hospital, Ceadîr-Lunga District Hospital.

The donation of ambulances, worth US $586,000, was made possible thanks to the financial support of UNFPA and the European Union, and is part of the humanitarian response to the refugee crisis.

The main purpose of this donation is to ensure access to quality services for mothers and babies throughout the country.

The donation of ambulances will facilitate fast transfer to specialized centers for women at risk of complications and premature birth, resulting in improved patient health by ensuring rapid access to specialized care and efficient use of existing resources.

The UNFPA Moldova team, together with Nigina Abaszada, the Resident Representative, and Ala Nemerenco, the Minister of Health of the Republic of Moldova, were present at the ceremony of handing over the ambulances to the beneficiary medical institutions.

Nigina Abaszada, Resident Representative of UNFPA Moldova, emphasized the importance of this donation, noting that the transfer of ambulances to maternity hospitals, along with other modern equipment and services offered so far to the health system, is part of UNFPA's firm commitment to ensure that every pregnancy is planned and every birth is safe, and all women, both Moldovan and refugee, have access to the best reproductive health services. UNFPA has identified the need to improve the perinatal care system to reduce perinatal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. One of the key strategies to achieve this goal is to improve health facilities in the referral system for women and newborns who require specialized care, emphasizing a regional approach to the delivery of medical services. These Type A ambulances will facilitate the safe and rapid transfer of patients from level II perinatal centers to the Mother and Child Institute, the only level III perinatal center in the country.

In the beginning of this year, UNFPA with the financial support of the US Government donated another 20 new ambulances to the emergency medical assistance teams in the country.