INTERSOS is in Ukraine, Poland and Moldova to guarantee primary healthcare, protection and psychological support to people fleeing the conflict, with particular attention to the most vulnerable people, such as women and children
UPDATE MARCH 14, 2022
UKRAINE. Operations have begun in Lviv, in western Ukraine, an area that has so far been less affected by the conflict, where there are more than 80,000 displaced people. We started assisting the population and delivered the first boxes of medical supplies to the local authorities. In the next few days we will move towards the inner areas of the country, to support the hospitals close to the conflict zones, currently in a state of increasing fatigue, and to assist displaced people.
POLAND. Our intervention continues in the center of Korczowa, on the border with Ukraine, where there are fewer and fewer people in transit due to the escalating conflict. On Saturday, March 12 and Sunday, March 13, our medical staff visited about 80 people, including several wounded by firearms or bomb residues, mainly women and elderly people. Given the absence of specific dedicated services, ensuring assistance in transferring the most vulnerable people to appropriate health facilities remains a priority.
MOLDOVA. Due to the bombings in the town of Mykolaiv, in the south of Ukraine, on Friday 11th and Saturday 12th of March, the flow of people fleeing towards Tudora and Palanca was practically interrupted, only to resume in the late hours of Sunday 13th. Our mobile clinic is operational a few kilometers away from the border crossing at Palanca and protection activities continue, with daily monitoring at the borders of Tudora and Palanca and the installation of a gazebo for information and orientation activities at the bus station in Palanca.
UPDATE MARCH 11, 2022
POLAND. On yesterday, Thursday 10th of March, we witnessed a decrease in the number of people in transit at the center of Korczowa, from more than 4,000 in recent days to about 500 yesterday. Due to the worsening of the situation in the eastern areas of the country, fewer people manage to escape, reach Lviv and cross the border. Among the people assisted, our health team notes a worrying increase in children with serious respiratory problems.
MOLDOVA. The number of people in transit on Moldovan territory is increasing, about 300,000 in total, according to yesterday’s data. Our social and health intervention continues: we are operating at the border crossing point of Tudora, near Palanca. Here we offer primary healthcare but also protection services and information to the most vulnerable people. In the next days these services will be activated also on the other side of the Moldovan border, on the Ukrainian territory, in order to guarantee a first assistance to people waiting to cross the border.
UPDATE MARCH 9, 2022
POLAND. Activities continue in the center of Korczowa, where on March 7 and 8 people in need of urgent psychological support were identified. Arrivals continue to be numerous, with an average of 4,000 people per day. In addition to healthcare, our staff is committed to providing useful information to newly arrived people and directions on how to reach other countries. We are coordinating with local associations and institutions to ensure an adequate response plan for the most vulnerable people, including the elderly, disabled, women and unaccompanied minors. As orphanages have been evacuated, a high number of orphaned children is expected to arrive in the coming days.
MOLDOVA. It is estimated that, since February 24, about 250,000 people fleeing from Ukraine have arrived in Moldovan territory: around 100,000 are still in the country, while over 148,000 have reached Romania. Most of them are women and children. The most recent data show that 3/4 of the refugees in Moldova have been hosted by their families or through informal networks, while the remainder are housed in buildings made available for reception.
UPDATE MARCH 7, 2022
POLAND. Over the weekend, around 5,600 people passed through the center of Korczowa. Compared to the previous days, the number of patients assisted by our healthcare team has increased: many under two years of age, including two newborns. 28% of the patients are under the age of five and 21% have not yet reached the age of majority. The first case of unaccompanied minor was registered, a 17-year-old boy traveling alone because his father and mother were unable to leave Ukraine. Overall, 198 people were assisted on Sunday alone, not only of Ukrainian nationality, but also from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Yemen, Vietnam, Azerbaijan, Poland and Norway. No urgent cases were reported, but our medical team told of two infants, five and three days old, respectively, who need immediate medical attention along with their mothers. Among the main clinical problems encountered, respiratory tract infections in younger children emerge.
MOLDOVA. The INTERSOS team works near Tudora, on the border with Ukraine, to guarantee primary healthcare, psychosocial and information support. Meanwhile, efforts continue to set up a reception center in the capital Chisinau.
UPDATE MARCH 5, 2022
POLAND. Yesterday, March 4, our medical staff at the Korczowa center visited about 100 people. A nurse was added for the night shift. More medical personnel are on the way.
MOLDOVA. In the coming days our health staff will start providing medical assistance in the Tudora camp, near Palanca. We are starting operations to provide primary health care services also in the capital Chisinau.
UPDATE MARCH 4, 2022
POLAND. INTERSOS primary health intervention continues to be provided at the reception center in Korczowa, in collaboration with the regional and municipal paramedical services to people fleeing Ukraine. On Thursday 3rd of March alone, about 6,000 people passed by (the capacity of the center is about 2,000 beds). Our two doctors assisted 160 people, 40% of whom were women and children, especially infants. The health needs identified were mainly related to cold and muscle fatigue, which affects women more intensely. INTERSOS is currently the only non-governmental organisation present at the center.
MOLDOVA. In recent days, the first support activities have been launched at a community center in Chisinau, the capital, in collaboration with several civil society organisations. Our initial presence and activities in the capital will be expanded to other areas of the country. Today, March 4, our medical staff started operating in different areas around the town of Palanca, on the border with Ukraine. Healthcare needs are growing and medical care operations need to be strengthened.
UPDATE MARCH 3, 2022
In Poland, INTERSOS operates at the medical point of the Korczowa transit centre. A shopping mall turned into a reception centre with 1,500 cots to offer a bed to thousands of refugees arriving from the nearby border. The INTERSOS healthcare team, consisting of two doctors, works 12 hours per day to provide assistance to the most vulnerable people, especially women and children. Yesterday, March 2, in the first five hours of intervention, around 70 people were visited including a little girl suffering from cancer, who was referred to the nearest hospital to receive chemotherapy treatment that had been interrupted by the outbreak of war. Referral of the most serious cases is made in agreement with the local health authorities. The assisted persons show extreme fatigue due to several factors: the long journey to Poland, the cold and the lack of food and water. They fled by car, on foot, by train, or by bus. The INTERSOS medical team reports of children who can no longer speak, traumatized by the bombs and the mass flight. In an emergency context like this, it is urgent to guarantee essential medicines to treat chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and asthma. In addition to Ukrainian citizens, there are many people of several other nationalities who have left Ukraine and need humanitarian aid. Guaranteeing medical care and assistance is therefore our top priority.