Four years after the escalation of the war in Ukraine, the population continues to suffer from increasing attacks, which are increasingly targeting the population and civilian infrastructure such as water, electricity and heating plants, as well as medical facilities, schools and kindergartens. Now in winter, the consequences of these attacks are particularly evident. German rescue organisation Johanniter Unfall Hilfe e.V. is involved in providing civilian aid.
Many people are having to endure the coldest winter since the start of the war without electricity, heating or hot water. With temperatures around minus 20 degrees, this is an enormous additional psychological and physical strain on top of the fear of air raids and concern for family members at the front.
‘We at Johanniter condemn the attacks and their massive impact on the population. We also feel the psychological strain on our employees and partners. Despite everything, they try to be there for the people every day and provide them with protection, warmth and medical assistance,’ says Oliver Meermann, member of the Federal Executive Board of Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e.V.
Johanniter – Focus on medical assistance
In particular, the widespread destruction of hospitals and other health facilities means that people with serious injuries or illnesses now have limited access to medical care. Johanniter and its partners are caring for them in Ukraine and Germany.
Four clinics in different regions of Ukraine are offering free hepatitis C treatment for women, as well as psychological and legal support. Stroke patients receive comprehensive care in a renovated neurology department at St. Luke’s Hospital in Lviv. In addition, 16 medical facilities in the frontline region of Sumy were supplied with wood briquettes during the winter months to ensure continuous treatment for the people.
In addition, Johanniter International Assistance and its four partners supported the people of Ukraine with essential supplies last year. 1,158 people were evacuated from villages near the front line and taken to safer locations. 20,000 people received aid packages, vouchers, seeds and agricultural equipment. In addition, Johanniter International Aid helped 1,815 displaced persons to restore their identity documents and offered 1,267 women and their children protection from violence in women’s shelters.
Medical treatment for seriously injured people in Germany
Due to supply shortages in Ukraine, since 2022, seriously injured and ill people have been transported to Germany via the European Union Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) programme and distributed to hospitals here via the Kleeblatt system.
Together with the aid organisations Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund (ASB), Deutsche Lebens-Rettung-Gesellschaft (DLRG), Deutsches Rotes Kreuz (DRK) and Malteser Hilfsdienst (MHD), Johanniter provides both supplementary social care and medical repatriation for these seriously ill and injured patients from Ukraine.
Since 2022, over 1,700 MEDEVAC patients have been transported to Germany. More than 1,000 of them received supplementary social care from the aid organisations, and 115 of their relatives were also supported. In addition, 336 repatriations to Ukraine were carried out, during which 74 relatives were also transported back.
The project is funded by the European Union and the Federal Foreign Office in close coordination with the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Home Affairs (BMI) and the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG).
Source: Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e.V.
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