Life-saving oxygen for hospitals in Ukraine
Hungarian Interchurch Aid handed over oxygen production machinery to three hospitals in Ukraine with the support of the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the US State Department. By setting up these oxygen stations and training medical staff on their use as well as providing other medical equipment, HIA contributes to the operational safety of the Ukrainian healthcare facilities hit hard by the war and the pandemic.
Originally planned in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the development gained additional importance with the onset of war. Besides setting up these oxygen stations and training the staff, HIA also provided the 3 hospitals with patient monitors.
At the handover ceremony held at the Cherkassy hospital, the Ukrainian side led by Marina Slobodnichenko (Deputy Health Minister responsible for European Integration) stressed that the hospital provides health care for the entire Cherkassy region – and that the number of patients has increased significantly due to the influx of IDPs. Because of the war, the population is spending a lot of time in shelters and basements, which does not promote lung health, and models suggest an increase in the number of cases. The improvements in the hospital’s pulmonary unit will therefore contribute to the long-term safety of care for people with tuberculosis and other lung diseases.
