Ukraine: 6 months of conflict
Six months after the conflict broke out, more than a quarter of the Ukrainian population has been forced to flee their homes.
In the hardest-hit areas, the destruction of civilian infrastructure has made life unbearable for millions of people, who found themselves for weeks without access to food, water, heating, or electricity, under the constant threat of bombardment.
Already active in Ukraine for 8 years, our teams had to adapt to respond to the scale of the emergency. The proximity of the border with the European Union allowed the opening of logistical corridors to deliver medical supplies to support the Ukrainian health system. We began by directly providing health and mental health services to nearly 80,000 displaced persons in safer cities within the country.
One of our priorities was also to relocate the Doctors of the World team to a safe location to establish the new operations base.
We commend this team, which was able to overcome the complexity of the situation, to rise again and adapt, even though many of them were directly affected by the conflict, forced to leave their homes behind.
More than 100 members of the Doctors of the World team in Ukraine fled their homes and continued to work with the organization for the health of the population. They too are part of the 8 million internally displaced persons who have left behind a part of their lives.
In a conflict context, it is vital to heal wounds, but sometimes it is the invisible injuries that hurt the most: this is why support for the mental health of Ukrainians is now our priority.
It is common for displaced persons and those who have experienced combat firsthand to need mental health support. They may suffer from emotional disorders such as acute stress, anxiety, sadness, sleep disorders, and behavioral disorders. This psychological pain can also have a direct impact on these individuals’ environment and thus affect an entire community.
Children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to this type of trauma and its effects. To prevent this from becoming chronic and to limit its impact on communities, it is necessary to provide care at an early stage.
Our interventions target displaced persons in reception centers, in Ukraine and neighboring countries, by conducting group interventions to develop mutual support and foster group resilience. The most severe cases of distress or psychological breakdown are managed in a Doctors of the World clinic in the city or through a helpline. The goal is to strengthen the resilience of people experiencing high levels of violence and to promote the well-being of the Ukrainian people.
Thanks to the generosity of our donors:
- 936 displaced persons received care from our mobile unit
- 979 people were treated by our intervention group
- 24 health centers were supported
- 38 tons of medicines and medical supplies were sent
- 266,881 people benefited from our intervention