Declining Quality of Education and Unequal Access to Medical Services — the Main Public Service Issues in the Halytsynove Community

Publication date: May 22, 2025

Author: Yuliia Bilyk, Communications Manager at the Legal Development Network

With expert support from the Legal Development Network, in cooperation with the humanitarian organization People in Need and with financial support from the Czech Development Agency, the Halytsynove Community of the Mykolaiv Region has developed a Public Services Ecosystem Development Concept until 2030. Created as part of the Vidnova project, this document outlines the key tasks and projects whose implementation will help improve the quality of life in the community. Among other elements, the Concept is based on the results of a sociological survey that examined the quality of public services and the level of satisfaction with them. Below we present the most important findings of the survey.

Community and Survey Overview

The survey in the Halytsynove Community was conducted in December 2024. It covered the full range of public services provided by the community within its mandate: education, healthcare, social services, administrative services, as well as cultural and sports services.

Street interviews using a programmed questionnaire were conducted with a total of 315 respondents — residents of five towns and villages in the community: the villages of Halytsynove, Lymany, Lupareve, Prybuzke, and Ukrainka. The community also includes the village of Stepova Dolyna, where the survey was not conducted due to the small number of residents — about two dozen.

The community borders the Mykolaiv Region: the distance from the village of Halytsynove to the regional center is 26 kilometers. Three villages of the community are located near the highway that connects Mykolaiv and Kherson. Following the full-scale invasion, the community has become home to internally displaced people from the Kherson Region.

In recent years, the residents of the community have become even more closely connected to the regional center than before: they work in Mykolaiv, spend their leisure time there, and send their children to study there. This is primarily due to the shutdown of the enterprise that, until March 2022, formed the community’s budget and provided employment — Mykolaiv Alumina Refinery Company Limited, the largest producer of non-ferrous metals in Ukraine and one of the largest in Europe.

Due to security threats, the interview team was forced to terminate the survey somewhat earlier than planned. At the time of their work in Halytsynove, enemy shelling from the Kinburn Spit intensified.

Low Level of Perceived Safety in Everyday Life Affects the Quality of All Public Services

According to the survey, the main concern of residents in the Halytsynove Community is safety in everyday life — this issue worries 84% of respondents, far surpassing the next most pressing issues (availability of funds or income stability to meet basic needs — 29%, access to electricity, heating, other amenities, and maintenance of housing — 18%).

“People are concerned about safety and everything related to it. If the security situation were to improve, most of the problems in the area of public services could be addressed: infrastructure could be rebuilt, schooling could resume, and more cultural events could be organized,” said Maryna Shpiker, sociologist and coordinator of the comprehensive research teams.

Regardless of the public service referenced in the survey questions, safety was consistently identified as a problematic aspect. For example, on a five-point scale, where 5 means “very good” and 1 means “very poor,” 37% of respondents were satisfied with safety in education (rated 4–5), while 32% were dissatisfied (rated 1–2); in terms of sports infrastructure, 4% were satisfied and 67% dissatisfied; in healthcare, 28% were satisfied and 50% dissatisfied.

At the same time, Iryna Shaptala, a specialist in organizing sociological research in the Mykolaiv Region, noted that she did not observe any signs of panic among the people she spoke with in the Halytsynove Community.

“Despite the danger, the majority of community residents — 87% — do not plan to leave for an extended period. In some settlements, we were pleasantly surprised by an exceptionally high level of trust in local self-government. For example, in the village of Lymany, the starosta (community elder) was frequently mentioned as a strong point of the community. It seems that people support one another, and this support outweighs the danger,” said Iryna Shaptala.

The War Has a Detrimental Impact on the Quality of Education in the Community

Almost all respondents who care for minors stated that their children had been learning remotely over the past few years (95%). 13% had experience with a blended learning format. Although 75% considered the quality of education to be good, 91% of respondents believed that the level of educational services has deteriorated under the conditions of the full-scale invasion.

Over the past two years, 43% of families with minors attending preschool, school, or extracurricular institutions experienced certain issues with receiving educational services.

“We interviewed many respondents directly in schools and kindergartens — although learning is remote, the staff are at their workplaces. We saw cozy classrooms with new furniture and all the necessary equipment. But due to the constant threat of shelling, children cannot make use of it. Only recently has the community begun actively building shelters,” explained Iryna Shaptala.

According to her, remote learning has its drawbacks, the main one being an unstable internet connection.

“We understand why this happens. The Mykolaiv Region is a front-line area; from time to time, the military interrupts communications. And, naturally, interrupted lessons affect the overall quality of learning,” noted Iryna Shaptala.

Residents Need Better Access to Specialized Medical Services

Only primary healthcare services are available in the Halytsynove Community. Specialized doctors visit the villages of the community on a scheduled basis. Because of this, many residents choose not to wait for an appointment with a doctor in their village outpatient clinic but instead seek medical care in facilities located in Mykolaiv. Among the respondents, 65% reported doing so, while 36% receive specialized medical services within the Halytsynove Community.

According to the survey, the situation in the community’s central village of Halytsynove differs from that in other villages. There, equal shares of residents — 56% and 55%, respectively — sought care from specialized doctors either in their own village or in Mykolaiv. In contrast, among residents of other villages, 68% travel to the regional center for medical care, and only 29% receive such services in the community.

“In Halytsynove, people talked less about problems in the healthcare sector, whereas in villages like Prybuzke, Ukrainka, and to a lesser extent Lymany and Lupareve, residents complained that they only had a nurse available,” said Iryna Shaptala.

However, according to Iryna Shaptala, it is precisely the nurse’s work — who personally and frequently visits patients — that explains the survey responses in which people stated that they had called a doctor to their home in the past two years.

As for necessary improvements in the provision of specialized medical services in the community, respondents most often selected the option “to open a facility where secondary-level doctors would provide services on a permanent basis” (42%). 35% said that doctors should visit the community more frequently, 34% proposed expanding the availability of instrumental diagnostics and laboratory tests in the community, and 28% supported expanding the list of medical specialties available locally.

“While speaking with people, I also heard about the need to have access to purchasing medicines directly within the community. Since there are currently no pharmacies in any of the villages, residents are forced to travel to Mykolaiv to obtain medications,” said Iryna Shaptala.

Quality of Physical Culture and Sports Services Does Not Satisfy Community Residents

Although 82% of respondents do not engage in physical activity or sports in their daily lives due to personal circumstances, among the 19% who do, 67% do not use the existing sports infrastructure in the Halytsynove Community. The majority of respondents (73%) receive physical culture and sports services in Mykolaiv.

Regarding conditions for engaging in physical activity and sports in the community, 9% rated them 4 out of 5, 49% — 3 out of 5, and 40% — 1–2 out of 5. As for the material and technical base for sports, 15% gave a score of 4–5, 36% — 3, and 44% — 1–2.

According to respondents, the community should open or renovate and properly equip sports facilities (sports grounds, gyms, fitness clubs, swimming pools) and involve coaches.

“Respondents also expressed interest in having more scheduled buses from the villages to Mykolaiv. We were somewhat surprised that a significant percentage of people preferred better transportation to the regional center rather than developing infrastructure within their own community,” noted Iryna Shaptala.

Cultural Institutions Have Become Centers of Volunteer Activity

Despite the low level of attendance at cultural and library institutions in the Halytsynove Community (13% visited them less than once every six months, and 66% had not visited them at all in recent years), a significant share of respondents — 30% — either volunteer at such institutions or receive humanitarian assistance there.

“In cultural institutions, people are weaving camouflage nets en masse. They take turns, relieve each other, and the process never stops,” emphasized Iryna Shaptala.

Three out of ten respondents travel outside the community to meet their cultural needs — such as attending events, concerts, clubs, or creative groups. Among those who travel, nearly all meet their cultural needs in Mykolaiv, with far fewer doing so in the Shevchenkove Community. They do not use the services of cultural institutions in other neighboring communities.

Strengths and Weaknesses of the Community

Proximity to the front line, shelling, significant destruction, the absence of a pharmacy and an on-call doctor — these are considered the most serious weaknesses of the Halytsynove Community according to its residents. In certain villages — Lupareve and Lymany — residents mentioned the poor condition of infrastructure and roads, especially between villages and on local streets. Respondents also expressed dissatisfaction with the uneven distribution of the community’s budget: most expenditures are directed to the central village. Additionally, some mentioned distrust of the authorities due to insufficient attention to residents’ needs.

“Local residents voice their concerns. To say that the authorities are doing nothing would be unfair. But solving all the problems — especially quickly — is beyond the capacity of the community’s leadership. First, the community lost the enterprise that funded its budget. The second factor is the proximity to the war zone. At the same time, I understand the frustration: children who were in 7th grade at the beginning of the full-scale war are now graduating. All this time, they have mostly studied remotely, with frequent interruptions,” explained Iryna Shaptala.

The strengths of the Halytsynove Community include its proximity to Mykolaiv and transportation links to the regional center, renovated schools, support for older people and those in difficult life circumstances. Respondents also cited the friendliness and solidarity of residents, active starostas, picturesque nature, and a sufficient community budget as advantages.

Conclusions

“Based on the questions that arose during the preparation of strategic documents, it seemed that the local authorities themselves do not fully understand how and where their residents meet their needs. In other words, it is clear that some public services are not provided in the community, but it is not clear where people go to receive them,” said Maryna Shpiker.

Overall, according to the sociologist, the survey answered key questions and highlighted priority tasks for the community.

“The security situation in the community remains tense, affecting all aspects of life. For example, solving the issue of declining education quality under the conditions of forced remote learning and frequent power outages is unrealistic. However, the community can help by opening a pharmacy, an Administrative Service Center (ASC), investing some resources in infrastructure repairs, and improving access to secondary-level medical services,” concluded Maryna Shpiker.

The material and sociological study were prepared by the Legal Development Network in cooperation with the humanitarian organization People in Need and with funding from the Czech Development Agency. The views and interpretations of the data presented herein are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of the project’s donors or partners.

Infographics by Maryna Shpiker

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