In any country at peace, if a person at some level blood pressure changed a lot, like 200 to 100 -when the normal pressure value is 120 to 80-he is taken to the hospital. Not at war. cases rapidly rising blood pressureamong many other ailments is what they find Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) mobile clinics who has reached Kharkiv region recaptured by Ukraine after months of Russian occupation.
Most of the patients ‘babushkas’ –ukrainian old and old women– those who survived as much as they could during more than half a year of Russian occupation in the shelters shared the little food there. Diseases of any woman her age have increased exponentially and now health workers have found it in Kharkiv medical needs Y mental without solving.
limited mobility, Hearing loss anyone opinion, hypertension, diabetes, head of the MSF medical team, Dr. It is an example of medical pictures found by healthcare professionals, as Gino Manciati explains: “In another context, these patients would be hospitalized. Here that is absolutely not possible.” The doctor explains, hypertension Untreated can cause serious complicationssuch as vision loss, kidney failure, neurological deterioration and even sudden death. LIn addition to the stress of war, the lack of medical personnel and medicine has caused many patients’ health conditions to spiral out of control. “Unfortunately, we saw patients who developed complications in their organs, such as kidney failure,” the doctor adds.
Non-medicated diabetics
The war in this region, many people diabetes dispose of medicines, aggravated by the fact of food shortages prevented you from controlling your dietcaused problems, mobility, vision and muscle function.
One of them MaryHaving difficulty walking after months of not receiving diabetes treatment. “we came here [a la clínica] for ‘babushka’” says Tonya, Maria’s daughter. “She is shaking and has a headache. [Hace meses] He We don’t have medicine for your diabetesTonya’s paralyzed wife has returned home. Like many severely disabled people, her spouse has difficulty leaving the house and therefore cannot access any health services.
Dr. “An elderly woman walked for half an hour to come to our clinic, which is not easy if you have difficulty walking,” Dr. Manciati recalls. there alone, but to buy medicine for her husband. We see her sometimes: These old women come to us from far away, not just for themselves, but for their husbands, daughters or sons., unable to reach our equipment. You think you’re here to support the people you see, but sometimes the impact goes even further.”
psychological wounds
“I was sitting by my window when the war started on the morning of February 24,” he says. Raisawho is 68 years old his hometown is the village of Yakovenkov from the beginning. “I heard loud explosions and saw a cloud of dust in the sky. Rows of tanks began to advance. When we realized that everything would not be over in one day, we tried to think about what to do: how to eat, how to eat? Take care of our gardens. We tried to get used to the situation, but it was impossible to get used to such intense shelling. It was shot day and night. It was terrible.”
Raisa receives mental health support of the psychological team from the mobile clinic MSF. It provides patients with tools to manage their stress that can help normalize blood pressure and provides coping mechanisms for anxiety, acute stress reactions and panic attacks. “I came to see the psychologist because I still can’t sleepsays Raisa, “In the dead of night, missiles fly over buildings. This is so scary. It wrecks my nervous system“.
Although many people get rid of nightmares on their own, and flashbacks, mental health support can speed up your recovery. When that support isn’t enough, MSF doctors and psychologists work together to find the best way to help patients.
“I wake up with fear”
“I sleep very badly, I am very tired“, to recognise Valentina70 from Vasylenkova lost his son Rome to a mine. “I wake up scared and see him in front of me. This war took my health and my son“I am crying and shouting. Now she’s gone and my life is over“.
Valentyna receives healthcare to help with her sleep problems, while MSF psychologists provide her with mental health support.
Many old women Visitors to MSF clinics feeling isolated, abandoned and alone. With the pain of losing family members and the life they knew, many they feel their life has no meaning anymore. “For these older women, the feeling of having lost their purpose in life causes anxiety, and the impression of having to build a new purpose for the last years of their lives causes despair,” she explains. Camilo García, head of MSF mental health activities. “We hear older women tell us that they feel the last years of their lives have been stolen from them,” she adds.
among the most vulnerable these older people with dementia or psychiatric conditions those who could not go to a safe place at the beginning of the war, and those who were alone with no one to take care of them. Some decided to stay at home, others were evacuated to overcrowded nursing homes in cities; These evictions are still ongoing.
While the mental health needs of the residents of this area are high, García believes their inner strength will help them cope and heal.
“Ukraine’s ‘babushkas’ have a hidden strength: resilience”, says García. “Despite the fighting and the bombings, they decided to stay in their town. They defended their right to stay where they belong,” he adds, “that takes courage.”