Ukraine: millions of patients need support
20.03.2022
Reading time
3 minutes
Up to 2,000,000 people with rare diseases remained in Ukraine. There is a lack of basic medications and medical products, which in the case of some diseases is directly threatening to life. The supplies bought three weeks ago may not be enough for long, and the pharmacy warehouses are empty. Help for those in need is provided by the Polish Medical Mission, which, together with its partners, has already prepared several transports to Ukrainian hospitals.
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Currently, about two million people with rare diseases live in Ukraine. Another several million people suffer from other diseases that require constant access to health care, such as diabetes and cancer. Insulin and antiepileptic drugs are urgently needed, hospitals have run out of oxygen almost from the first day of the war, and cancer patients cannot continue treatment due to drug transport restrictions. Although the lists of needs that the Polish Medical Mission receives from Ukrainian hospitals on a daily basis include mainly painkillers, antibiotics and dressings, they also include specialist medications for patients who are unable to leave the country. In the maze of numbers and items, one slogan is repeated from time to time – “send as much as you can”.
Our organization’s commitment to helping hospitals is a must. We must not forget that most of the people of Ukraine remained in the country. This is over 40 million people who need functioning medical facilities. And yet the number of hospitalized patients increases by the victims of attacks, in which the hospitals themselves also suffer, – says Ewa Piekarska-Dymus from the Polish Medical Mission.
The shortage of drugs and medical products is a problem across the country. The health of sick people is additionally worsened by staying in overcrowded shelters, when around night temperatures drop below zero. There are places where access to water or basic food products is difficult.
Unavailability of medical supplies and the possible collapse of the health service could result in more casualties than military operations alone. The most vulnerable are those who find it most difficult to escape the nightmare of war: the sick, the disabled, the elderly, pregnant women and newborns. That is why on-site assistance is so badly needed – emphasizes Ewa Piekarska-Dymus.
Together with its partners, the Polish Medical Mission has already delivered over a dozen transports to hospitals in Kiev, Lutsk, Vinnitsa, Odessa and other cities. The next ones will leave Poland and the organization’s warehouse in Lviv in the following days. The organization constantly raises funds to help as many people in need as possible.
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