On July 30, a Memorandum on partnership and cooperation was signed between representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the National Guard of Ukraine, one of the medical centers of NSU and the RETURN project, which was founded by Viktor and Olena Pinchuk to support the Security and Defense Forces of Ukraine.
The purpose of the Memorandum is the cooperation of the parties to create a mental health center for defenders of Ukraine and their families on the basis of a medical facility of the National Guard of Ukraine.
A Memorandum of Partnership and Cooperation was signed by Inna Yashchuk, State Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine; Oleksandr Pivnenko, Commander of the National Guard of Ukraine; and Svitlana Hrytsenko, Head of the RETURNING and RECOVERY projects and a member of the Board of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.
Svitlana Hrytsenko, Head of the RETURNING and RECOVERY projects and a member of the Board of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation, said that her organization is interested in cooperating with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and its structural units to ensure that Ukrainian defenders and their families receive high-quality psychological support.
“Cooperation with the National Guard of Ukraine demonstrates how the private sector and the state can join forces to support those who have experienced psychological trauma as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. This is not our first partnership with the Ministry of Internal Affairs — in the spring, a memorandum was signed on establishing a RETURNING center at a key medical facility of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Kyiv. Now this cooperation is expanding. The future RETURNING mental health center will become part of the nationwide network that Victor and Olena Pinchuk are creating to support military personnel, veterans, and their families in every region. It is particularly important that the center will work with heroes and heroines who have returned from captivity. Helping those who defended and continue to defend our country recover mentally is our duty and our honor,” said Svitlana Hrytsenko, Head of the RETURNING project and a member of the Board of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.
During the official signing ceremony, Inna Yashchuk, State Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, emphasized the importance of treatment, rehabilitation, and social support for military personnel. In this context, the ministry is cooperating with the RETURNING project.
“The leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is making every effort to develop departmental military medicine and strengthen the infrastructure of medical and rehabilitation centers for Ukrainian defenders. This work involves ongoing interagency cooperation with other government institutions, charitable foundations, governments of other countries, and international organizations. One successful example of social partnership is our cooperation with the RETURNING project.”
In particular, a RECOVERY rehabilitation center is already successfully operating at a healthcare facility of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, while a mental health center for military personnel, veterans, and their families — RETURNING — is also being established. The partnership also includes professional development programs and exchanges of expertise between doctors and mental health professionals.
“Joint work on establishing a mental health center at one of the healthcare facilities of the National Guard of Ukraine, as well as the joint formation of a team of specialists, will help us heal the invisible wounds of our defenders more quickly and effectively,” said the State Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
She emphasized that doctors within the Ministry of Internal Affairs system regularly improve their qualifications and undertake internships abroad. The ministry is also working to modernize its infrastructure and medical services.
“We are developing various areas of therapy in treatment and rehabilitation. Currently, at the initiative of Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko, the first departmental prosthetics center is being established.”
Inna Yashchuk thanked Commander of the National Guard of Ukraine Oleksandr Pivnenko for his continued care for military personnel and his particular attention to service members released from captivity, the families of fallen soldiers, prisoners of war, and people missing in action.
Oleksandr Pivnenko, Commander of the National Guard of Ukraine, emphasized that the development of treatment and rehabilitation is among the organization’s priorities, and that implementing the measures outlined in the Memorandum will help accelerate this work. He also thanked the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for its support and effective coordination with partners, and the RETURNING project for its important social initiative.
“The National Guard of Ukraine, with the support of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and its partners, is modernizing the infrastructure of medical and rehabilitation centers. We are opening new departments, equipping them with modern medical equipment, and training medical personnel. An extremely important part of this process is the creation of a network of centers for the psychological recovery of military personnel. This issue is highly relevant both during the war and after it ends. The new mental health center, which will operate in cooperation with the RETURNING project, will focus on the psychological recovery of service members released from captivity,” said the Commander of the National Guard of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Vsevolod Stebliuk, Head of the Military Medical Directorate of the National Guard of Ukraine, said that the efforts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the National Guard of Ukraine have resulted in a modern medical center for National Guard personnel. Service members receive high-quality treatment and physical rehabilitation services there, while the social partnership with the RETURNING project will help provide high-quality psychological recovery services in an inpatient setting.
Background Information
RETURNING (Ukr. «ПОВЕРНЕННЯ») is a nationwide project founded by Ukrainian philanthropists Victor and Olena Pinchuk. The project includes the creation of a nationwide network of RETURNING mental health centers where military personnel, veterans, and their family members can receive free professional support. The project plans to establish 20–25 mental health centers across Ukraine, where more than 100,000 military personnel, veterans, and their family members will be able to receive free support annually.
Significant attention is also devoted to implementing world-class educational programs for mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychotherapists, to ensure effective, evidence-based treatment and psychological support. In 2025, more than 90 educational events are planned as part of the project, ranging from lectures to practical training sessions and internships, aimed at strengthening professionals’ knowledge and skills in working with military personnel, veterans, and their families.
The first annual scientific and practical conference “RETURNING. The Path to Mental Recovery” was held in Kyiv. The conference took place as part of the nationwide RETURNING (Ukr. «ПОВЕРНЕННЯ») project, founded by Victor and Olena Pinchuk to support Ukraine’s Security and Defense Forces. The project focuses on supporting the mental health of military personnel, veterans, and their family members who have experienced psychological trauma as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
The inaugural event brought together more than 200 participants, including representatives of civilian and military healthcare institutions working to support the mental well-being of military personnel, veterans, and their families. Representatives of professional associations and civil society organizations also took part, alongside guests from the United States, Canada, and Israel, as well as military personnel, veterans, and representatives of the Ukrainian authorities, including the Office of the President of Ukraine, the Ministry for Veterans Affairs, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Speakers included Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Ukraine; Victor Pinchuk, businessman and philanthropist, founder of the RECOVERY and RETURNING projects; Iryna Vereshchuk, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine; Oksana Zbitnieva, Head of the Mental Health Coordination Center under the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine; Iryna Mykychak, Adviser to the Prime Minister of Ukraine; Roman Kechur, MD, PhD, psychiatrist, psychotherapist, psychoanalyst, and Head of the Department of Psychology and Psychotherapy at the Faculty of Health Sciences of Ukrainian Catholic University; Andrii Karachevskyi, Senior Officer of the Development and Implementation Division of the Psychological Support Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine; and Kseniia Voznytsina, Director of the Forest Glade Mental Health and Rehabilitation Center for Veterans of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
International experience was presented, among others, by Scott Milligan, Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and Igor Mishunin, international expert and Head of Training Programs at the Israel Trauma Coalition, Israel. In total, more than 40 mental health professionals shared their practical expertise through presentations, interactive lectures, workshops, and panel discussions.
In his welcome address to the conference participants, RETURNING founder, businessman and philanthropist Victor Pinchuk said: “When it comes to education within the RETURNING project, you can fully count on us as partners. We will invite the best specialists in the world to share their experience with you. We will encourage everyone — this is very important at the stage of development. I understand that later you will become the best specialists in the world, but even now, you can count on the involvement of the very best in this project.”
First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska expressed her support for the important initiative: “Today, we are creating a path, an opportunity to receive help. Each person decides for themselves whether or not to take this path. But this path must be accessible and simple, with clear navigation. I am confident that the RETURNING project will create yet another such path to mental health.”
Iryna Vereshchuk, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said:“We have laid the foundation for a sustainable and strong system of mental health support for military personnel and veterans. But we need more. We need synergy between government, civil society, and private initiatives. The RETURNING project is about precisely this kind of public-private partnership. This is a time when only initiatives that are large-scale and systemic can truly work. That is why I am always glad and grateful to see projects where people work every day, methodically and persistently, to achieve long-term, ambitious and, most importantly, realistic goals.”
The RETURNING project involves the creation of a nationwide network of mental health centers that will provide free outpatient services at public healthcare facilities. The project’s first center had already opened in Dnipro shortly before the conference. At the first stage, at least 25 centers are planned to open in different regions of Ukraine, where more than 105,000 military personnel, veterans, and their family members will be able to receive free support.
The project is also actively implementing world-class educational programs for mental health professionals. In 2025, more than 90 educational events are planned, including lectures, practical training sessions, and internships involving Ukrainian and international experts. These initiatives aim to strengthen professionals’ expertise and support their personal and professional development.
Hanna Kappes,clinical psychologist and psychotherapist at the Dnipro center of the nationwide RETURNING network,said: “Continuous learning is not simply a necessity of our time, but an internal resource for growth. It gives us access to new knowledge, inspires us to act with greater confidence, and helps us understand ourselves and others more deeply. The RETURNING conference brings together a community of like-minded professionals, giving us a sense of support and confidence that we are moving in the right direction.”
The main goal of RETURNING is to create an effective, sustainable, and war-experience-sensitive support system that will enable military personnel, veterans, and their families to receive qualified psychological care and appropriate mental health recovery.
Victor and Olena Pinchuk are launching a nationwide project aimed at supporting the mental health of military personnel, veterans, and their families who have experienced psychological trauma as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The RETURNING (Ukr. «ПОВЕРНЕННЯ») project seeks not only to provide access to professional mental health care, but also to establish systemic support for those who have endured the most difficult experiences of the war.
The project will focus on two key areas:
At the first stage of the project, at least 25 mental health centers will be established across Ukraine, with centers planned in every region. Military personnel, veterans, and their family members who require psychological support will be able to seek consultations and assistance at the centers closest to them. RETURNING mental health centers will be established on the basis of public healthcare facilities and will provide free outpatient services. The first center will open in early 2025 in the city of Dnipro.
The goal of the RETURNING project is not only to support psychological recovery, but also to systematically develop the mental health sector in Ukraine by creating a nationwide network. Significant attention will also be devoted to professional education, as highly qualified psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychotherapists are key to successful recovery from trauma. In cooperation with leading Ukrainian and international experts, specialized educational programs will be developed to help healthcare professionals provide effective support to people who have experienced war-related trauma.
Commenting on the initiative, RETURNING founder, businessman and philanthropist Victor Pinchuk said:
“The traumas of war are often invisible, but their impact on people’s lives is enormous. Every Ukrainian carries a tremendous psychological burden. But those on the front line bear the heaviest burden of all — constantly risking their lives and losing their brothers and sisters in arms. It is precisely to support them and help them return to a fulfilling life that we are launching this new project. I believe it will be successful. I have confidence in the professionalism of our specialists and in the resilience of our heroes and heroines. People can stand firmly on their feet even when those feet have been amputated, because true strength is born in the mind. It is mental resilience and faith in oneself that make it possible to overcome the most difficult challenges.”
RETURNING founder Olena Pinchuk emphasized:
“The longer the war continues, the more severe the mental health challenges become for those who face unimaginable trials every day. The human psyche has resources, but they are not limitless. Mental health issues are no less important or complex than physical health issues. They must be treated with the utmost attention and respect. It is extremely important that genuine professionals be involved in addressing them. Therefore, our task is to create a nationwide network in which, at every center, our heroes and heroines will feel the care and support of the highest-level professionals.”
The RETURNING mental health project will become another key area of support for military personnel, veterans, and their families. In early 2023, Victor and Olena Pinchuk launched the national RECOVERY network of rehabilitation centers for wounded military personnel. Since then, 15 innovative and barrier-free centers have been opened, providing high-quality free services to more than 20,000 wounded military personnel. As part of RECOVERY’s educational program, more than 3,000 healthcare professionals have participated in training and professional exchange programs, including in the United States, Austria, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Switzerland, and Norway.
Ukraine is currently experiencing an unprecedented crisis as a result of Russia’s military aggression, causing severe psychological trauma among Ukrainians. The war contributes to the development of various mental health disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety disorders, burnout, and other mental health conditions. Military personnel are particularly exposed to these adverse factors, and the consequences of war can significantly affect their quality of life. Under conditions of constant stress and risk, they face serious challenges in maintaining psychological balance, which can also affect their ability to perform combat missions effectively.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one in five people living in areas affected by armed conflict experiences some form of mental health disorder at some point over the course of the previous 10 years — ranging from mild depression or anxiety to psychosis. At the same time, nearly one in ten people, including veterans, may have a mental health disorder and require support.
During active hostilities, information on the prevalence of mental health disorders among military personnel remains sensitive. At the same time, according to a sociological study conducted by Gradus Research Company, 71% of surveyed civilians in Ukraine have recently experienced stress or severe nervousness. Military personnel, meanwhile, are constantly exposed to situations that can cause psychological trauma and, without timely support, may lead to the development of mental health disorders.
The mental health centers are planned to provide systemic support, ensuring that military personnel, veterans, and their families receive qualified and timely care, prevention, and recovery services in accordance with the best international standards. The centers will provide support both through healthcare facilities and through mobile multidisciplinary teams.
The centers’ multidisciplinary teams will bring together clinical case managers, psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, nurses, social workers, reception coordinators, drivers, and medical registrars. This structure will enable the centers to provide effective and comprehensive support to patients at different stages of treatment and rehabilitation.
With the goal of developing a nationwide network of mental health centers, Victor and Olena Pinchuk are placing significant emphasis on professional education. Specialized training programs are planned for mental health professionals, taking into account the specific needs of each professional specialization and providing practical knowledge and effective tools for working with patients.
The programs will include opportunities to exchange experience with Ukrainian and international experts and supervisors with extensive experience in working with psychological trauma, including the consequences of war. Workshops, training sessions, and supervision meetings will help improve specialists’ qualifications, giving them the opportunity to select the most appropriate therapeutic approaches for restoring the mental well-being of military personnel and their family members.
These initiatives will contribute to strengthening professional expertise across Ukraine, introducing the best international practices in the field of mental health, and ensuring a high quality of care for patients.