Pioneering modular hospital design in Ukraine to set new standards for healthcare resilience in crisis-affected communities
January 22, 2025
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In response to the dire state of Ukraine's healthcare infrastructure, ravaged by war and exacerbated by mass civilian migration, Sunflower Network has unveiled the design of a modular children’s hospital that will set important new healthcare precedents for the entire nation and other communities around the world.
The hospital will serve as a pilot project, demonstrating how modular construction can deliver high-quality and sustainable healthcare in post-crisis settings.
Sunflower Network Founder and CEO Dustin Ross will further highlight the project later this week as part of a panel presentation titled, Health @ Davos 2025: Resilience & Innovation, Future Proofing Global Health Systems.
The project will be securely located in Brody, Ukraine, a Western city that is less than 50 miles from the Polish border and more than 600 miles from active fighting in the current Ukraine-Russia war.
The children’s hospital will also uniquely balance global standards with local insights, as the local municipality and head of hospital contributed significantly to the project vision. Once fully funded (the project is $3 million from its fundraising goal), the ready-to-go project will improve children’s lives from the moment it opens.
The current children’s hospital in Brody has seen a 100%+ surge in patients since the outbreak of the war and is severely under-resourced to meet this growing demand, further making this new facility a critical intervention. The project will help children, families, healthcare staff and its community.
CannonDesign is proudly designing this children’s hospital through our public-interest design practice, Open Hand Studio, in partnership with Pelli Clarke & Partners and numerous local Ukranian design and construction partners. The hospital marks the first phase of Sunflower Network's transformative intent to rebuild healthcare infrastructure across Ukraine.
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The children’s hospital will begin transforming the nation’s outdated healthcare system by elevating the standard of care to meet WHO and EU guidelines. Importantly, Sunflower Network is backed by the Clinton Global Initiative, ensuring it benefits from a global network of support and resources.
It is further strengthened by partnership with Northwell Health as the health system will serve as the exclusive clinical partner, committed to supporting the development of leading-edge clinical workflows and patient-care strategies.
The project is also strategically positioned along the vital Kyiv-to-Europe highway, serving both residents and displaced families from Eastern Ukraine. With a local population of 150,000 and a regional population of five million, Brody has been identified by the Ministry of Health as a key medical hub to address urgent healthcare needs.
Given the unique challenges of building in a conflict zone, the project places a strong emphasis on modularity, trauma-informed design, and sustainability.
The hospital’s modular template and easily replicable components, helping accelerate the project delivery timeline and reducing both local workforce dependency and waste. With its modularity, the hospital could serve as a beacon for similar projects across the country – without significant redesign – moving forward.
Moreover, according to the WHO, one in five individuals affected by conflict suffers from mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, or PTSD. This hospital aims to be more than just a clinical space—it will provide an environment of solace, dignity, and healing for children and families affected by war.
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Sustainability is another core principle of the hospital’s design. The facility will integrate regionally appropriate strategies to reduce energy consumption and optimize materials. Much of the project will be built off-site, expediting timelines, and reducing material waste and the need for a specialized local workforce
The design team plans to publish a deeper look at these key design drivers in the weeks ahead.
Sunflower Network, a non-profit organization that has already provided $4.5 million in life-saving aid to Ukrainians, is leading this effort with a global team of pro bono partners and local Ukranian teams to empower an implementation team:
- The coalition is anchored by the Mayor of Brody and Brody Central District Hospital.
- CannonDesign and Pelli Clarke & Partners are designing the project alongside a local team, led by CBM Forum and TPG.
- Northwell Health is an exclusive clinical partner, committed to supporting the development of leading-edge clinical workflows and patient-care strategies.
- The Ministry of Health Ukraine will assume ownership of the hospital upon completion, ensuring its long-term operations.
Sunflower Network initially unveiled this initiative at the Clinton Global Initiative in 2023, and 12-months of pre-development has now created a ready-to-go project. This week’s new announcement at Davos is further momentum for the project.
