Psychiatric hospital in Lviv accused of embezzling funds. What they replied

Journalists reported overpayments for construction materials, while the hospital director Bohdan Chechotka explains: they used not ordinary materials, but super-strong and "vandal-proof" ones, because patients in a state of psychosis destroy ordinary doors and walls.

Навколо реставрації психіатричної лікарні у Львові виник суперечка через ціни / фото з сайту медзакладу

03 July, 13:15

The Lviv Regional Psychiatric Hospital on Kulparkivska has been accused of overpricing in a new tender for the restoration of the main building for 452.7 million hryvnias. Analysts from the "Nashі Hroshi" project stated, that the estimated costs significantly overstate the prices of building materials, due to which the probable overpayment for several items alone could be around 8 million hryvnias. At the same time, the director of the medical facility, in a comment to "Your City", noted: the hospital's specifics require special durability, so it's not worth comparing complex technologies for a 150-year-old building with retail goods in ordinary stores.

What the investigators found and what are the claims regarding the cost estimate

The building of the "Kulparkiv" Mental Health Space is a monument of local architectural significance; its large-scale renovation started back in 2023. The third phase project was developed in 2026, and an expert positive report was provided in April by "Rembudconsulting" LLC. The works are planned until the end of 2027 and are financed within the European program Ukraine Facility (99 million UAH – state subsidy, 353.7 million UAH – NMSZE funds).

In June, the hospital signed an agreement with the tender winner – "Welt Capital" LLC. However, analysts from "Nashі Hroshi" examined the detailed cost estimate and found significant discrepancies in the cost of cables, doors, ceiling tiles, and construction mixtures compared to prices in the "Epicenter" chain.

Another participant submitted a bid – "Budivelna firma "Zhovkva", LTD" LLC, whose offer was almost 50 million UAH cheaper, but the hospital rejected it.

Bohdan Chechotka: "These are renovation and restoration works of a 150-year-old structure"

The General Director of the psychiatric hospital, Bohdan Chechotka, in a comment to "Your City" responded in detail to the investigators' remarks regarding the cost estimate and explained the specifics of procurement for the medical facility:

"This is a process that has been ongoing for more than one year, and we always have questions from journalists, activists, and law enforcement officers. Renovation and restoration works are more complex than simple construction because the building is 150 years old. Its primary function was a psychiatric hospital, and it remains so. But approaches and treatment methods have changed, which affects the plannings."

The head of the medical facility emphasized that he received explanations from the contractor on each item.

"We have justification for each item. Regarding the dispersion, which the article calculated to be twice as expensive as retail, people think it's glue. In reality, it's moisture-resistant paint, resistant to disinfection. We are reconstructing a hospital where vandal resistance must be increased. Regarding the cable for 97 hryvnias – we have recent market references with the same price. And the PVC coving for 407 hryvnias – this is not the price for the coving itself, but for a finished product: it includes the profile, skirting board, fastening elements, and the work of bending the linoleum."

The hospital director separately discussed the cost of aluminum doors (UAH 19,368/sq. m instead of market prices from UAH 5,222) and complex ceiling technologies:

"For the doors, an average price is indicated. We have such patients that if the doors are not super-strong, they will carry the frame out along with the medical staff. Acute psychosis requires limiting the patient's space, so windows, doors, walls, beds – all furniture must be super-strong and fixed. This is the specificity of the hospital."

Оновлення у психлікарні / фото медзакладу

As for the composite screed and profiled sheeting, they are used together for pouring between floors, explains Bohdan Chechotka.

"There are old wooden beams. The profiled sheeting goes under the floor, it must withstand 250-300 millimeters of foam concrete plus the screed. This is a new technology that we have already tested during the second phase."

According to the director, the hospital administration is open to dialogue and ready to correct the contractor's technical errors if they are confirmed:

"Neither I nor our team are inclined towards fraud. We are ready to listen to substantiated remarks and react by adjusting the price, but without compromising quality. The hospital is 150 years old, and in the last 50 years, nothing has been fundamentally done here. All communications, windows, roofs – everything is from the 1980s."

У лікарні показали ремонт у приміщеннях / фото медзакладу

Why the cheaper offer from "Zhovkva" was rejected

As explained by the hospital management and the Lviv Regional Council, the offer from the "Zhovkva" company, which was 50 million cheaper, could not be accepted due to the strict international requirements of the Ukraine Facility program.

"The project from 2025 is financed by the Ukraine Facility program funds, and there are very serious requirements there, - explains Bohdan Chechotka. - The localization of the manufacturer and the country of origin – China or Turkey – is an extremely sensitive issue that the European Union categorically does not allow. Even this is absolutely enough for rejection. Moreover, the company was not going to participate in the bidding seriously at all – they had about 10 serious shortcomings in documents and certificates. All this is substantiated and available in the Prozorro system."

According to the documentation of the Lviv Regional Council, "Zhovkva's" statements recorded goods originating from China, Japan, Turkey, the USA, and Taiwan. Also, one of the fire-resistant cables from the manufacturer "TD "Interelektro Ukraina" did not have valid confirmation of the localization degree in the registry, as its term expired on March 31, 2026.

Position of the Lviv Regional Council

The Lviv Regional Council " (truncated)Your City" explained that the hospital is a communal non-profit enterprise and has financial autonomy. The Regional Council is not the contracting authority for the tender and, by law, has no right to interfere in the tender procedures or influence the choice of contractor.

The decision to allocate budget funds was made based on the confirmed needs of the institution and the completed project expertise, not for a specific contractor. The LVO's order on the distribution of subsidies from the state budget was issued on May 28, 2026, while the contract with "Welt Capital" was concluded on June 24.

The regional council also added that the use of NGU funds for the restoration of the 150-year-old building is entirely legal, as it is a necessary condition for creating safe and adequate treatment conditions for patients.

In total, over 800 million hryvnias have already been allocated for the renovation of "Kulparkiv" (including the first two phases, where the admission block, intensive care unit, and rehabilitation zones for civilians and military personnel were equipped).

For the current year 2026, 100 million UAH are foreseen for the third phase. The complete restoration of the historical complex and the landscaping of the inner courtyards are planned to be finished by the end of 2027.

We remind you that the history of the Lviv psychiatric hospital area dates back to the 15th century, when there was a forest on this plot, which the city council ordered Mr. Goldberh to clear - it was from his distorted surname ("Goldpark") that the name Kulparkiv later originated. The hospital itself was opened in May 1875, when patients were transferred here from the first psychiatric department in Galicia, which operated at the regional hospital on Pijariv Street (now Yuriy Rufa Street).

From January 1876, by decision of the Austrian authorities, the institution began to function as an independent institution "for the insane," which initially only served the function of holding and caring for the sick. The most difficult period for the hospital was during the years of the German occupation in 1941-1944, when patients died en masse due to hunger, infections, and cold, and a part of the historical buildings suffered significant destruction.