“You go to bed. Whether you have slept or not, you wake up and think ‘I woke up -thank God.’”
For Tetiana, a resident of Olenivka village, close to the frontline in Ukraine, this is what another morning of war feels like. “It is frightening. Very frightening.”
Her son is away fighting in the war, her daughter recently passed away at only forty years old, yet when Tetiana talks about her family, she also talks about the future. “I live for my great-grandson. I want to be there for his wedding.”
This is the reality of living in a conflict zone. Going through immense loss and grief whilst also trying to maintain hope for your future.
Somewhere to turn
Across Ukraine, the war continues to deny sleep, separate families and cut communities off from care. Drone nets now stretch further from the frontline, while nightly air-raid warnings have become even more frequent.
After years of fear, loss and uncertainty, people need more than medicines: they also need someone to talk to. That is why UK-Med’s mobile clinics bring mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), alongside medical care, with mental health professionals offering space for people to share what they are going through.
For Tetiana and her neighbours, fear sits alongside health problems that do not stop for war. She has high blood pressure; her neighbour has heart problems. With fewer doctors working locally and minibuses no longer running, accessing care has become more difficult.
“There are still more than 200 people living here.” UK-Med teams have supported her community for two years, and Tetiana values their continued presence as local healthcare has become harder to access.
Olena, a UK-Med psychologist, visits communities just 18-25km from the frontline. “We often hear the fighting in the distance,” she says. “Sometimes it continues throughout the entire time we are at a location.”
For Olena, each visit offers more than treatment: “As they themselves say, they feel encouraged when they see us.” Residents echo Tetiana’s words: “You give us hope that we have not been abandoned.” The team cannot take away everything people face, but that contact helps them feel more settled , more hopeful.
Care that keeps coming
UK-Med have been in Ukraine since March 2022. As the war continues, so does the need for care.
Bringing physical and mental healthcare together means our teams can listen to people’s concerns as well as treat their medical needs.
UK-Med’s Ukraine programme is staffed mostly by Ukrainian humanitarians, supporting communities while living through the war themselves.
Asked what keeps her going, Olena is clear: “For me, it is my mission.” She wants to put her knowledge and experience to use, alongside the doctors and nurses she works with. “Knowing that we are where we need to be, and that our work is so important to people, that is what keeps us going.”
Tetiana is preparing for another winter. She is thinking about her family, and about a great-grandson’s wedding she hopes one day to attend. Alongside those hopes are immediate needs: medication, a doctor’s visit, someone to turn to.
Your support helps UK-Med keep reaching people who need healthcare, including mental health support. Donate today and share this story to help ensure communities like Tetiana’s are not forgotten.
