Our fifth airlift departed with critical medical supplies and other aid destined for Ukraine.
UPDATED March 23
A fifth Samaritan’s Purse airlift departed today carrying more than 19 tons of relief, including medical supplies for area hospitals as we work to strengthen the logistics and supply chain for the suffering medical system in Ukraine.
Our DC-8 departed Greensboro, North Carolina, March 23 with supplies destined for Ukraine.
• Our doctors and nurses have seen more than 1,000 patients since the beginning of our response, including four surgeries, and we continue to position medical teams in strategic locations according to need.
• A fourth medical intervention, a Medical Stabilization Point, opened in a bus station in Lviv today to provide urgent care and basic medical services to travelers. Teams continue to see an influx of patients at our train station clinic in Lviv, our Emergency Field Hospital on the outskirts of Lviv, and at an Emergency Outpatient Clinic in southern Ukraine.
• We continue to work through church partners to distribute items such as blankets, hygiene kits, and other non-food items through the country and in Moldova. A number of churches have opened their doors to refugees for shelter and also as distribution hubs for our relief efforts.
Our teams are working with churches to distribute food and non-food items in multiple locations.
Stressed medical facilities have requested essentials such as pharmaceuticals, bandages, IV supplies, antiseptic solutions, surgical supplies, and materials for casting and splinting broken bones. All of these are onboard our DC-8.
Medical needs among displaced people in Ukraine continue to grow as families flee for safety. We are seeing patients at our 58-bed emergency field hospital on the outskirts of Lviv and at our 24-hour clinic (triage/stabilization) at the train station in the heart of the city.
A third medical intervention, an emergency outpatient clinic, has opened in southern Ukraine to provide primary and urgent care medical services for up to 200 patients daily. This includes triage, first aid/minor trauma, basic prenatal services, screening and treatment of infectious diseases, and pharmaceuticals.
Medical Care for Weary Travelers
Many patients have been directly impacted by the conflict—including some who’ve arrived with shrapnel and gunshot wounds. Others are travelers with medical conditions made more dangerous by the strain of the evacuations.
Our medical work continues to expand in Ukraine and throughout the region.
Pregnant women are among the thousands fleeing.
In addition to emergency medicine and trauma surgeries, our field hospital is equipped to provide OB/GYN services for prenatal care, deliveries, and recovery.
One woman, seven months pregnant, fled fighting in Kharkiv and came to us for reassurance and a comforting word from our medical staff. In the chaos of her evacuation, her unborn child had become unusually still. She arrived at our field hospital clearly worried about his health.
When she heard his heartbeat on our ultrasound machine, she cried with relief. Our nurses reassured her that he was still healthy and growing. She was given prenatal vitamins, a warm meal, and encouraged to come back for any further care she might need.
“They have been asking us for these things, and we prayed to have them. God sent you to us.”
Providing Emergency Relief
Additionally, we are providing blankets and hygiene kits to be distributed to displaced Ukrainians through church partners.
Alex, a local pastor in Lviv, said the work of Samaritan’s Purse is helping to strengthen their efforts to care for their hurting people in Jesus’ Name.
“We were not prepared for this [conflict], but we decided that this is the time for the church to be the church. We want our actions to glorify God, and we pray that we will even be a witness to those on the other side of the conflict,” Pastor Alex told our teams. “We want the Lord to shine not just in Ukraine but in every part of this region.”
He added: “What you are bringing is perfect for us. These are things the refugees can take with them for the rest of the journey. They have been asking us for these things, and we prayed to have them. God sent you to us.”
Our clinic in southern Ukraine is being constructed to provide basic medical care to hurting people.
