After Years of War Syrian Doctors Lead Medical Mission in Ukraine
Dr. Monzer Yazji, co-founder of UOSSM and UOSSM USA, is leading a medical mission in Ukraine to provide medical and humanitarian relief to those affected by the war. UOSSM has gained invaluable expertise due to its role in the Syrian crisis since 2012 and will leverage this to provide the people of Ukraine with medical relief, support, and training in response methods.
The medical mission team visited with officials, leaders, and agencies on the ground to assess the situation for gaps/shortages in medicines, medical supplies, training needs (such as treating war wounds) and other humanitarian shortages.
UOSSM has already opened a field office which is operating a humanitarian relief station in Lviv for food and necessities as well as a medical point in Lutsk. UOSSM is also working to set up a field medical facility in Kiev. Dr. Monzer Yazji, a Syrian American doctor who has also been on the ground in Syria several times over the past 11 years has been triaging and providing medical relief and care to around 300 wounded or sick patients, stabilizing them, and providing medications at the urgent care clinic in Lutsk.
Dr. Yazji stated, “I have been watching the crisis of Ukraine from day one. History is repeating itself as I am seeing similar attacks and suffering that our people went through. I couldn’t sit back and watch the suffering of the Ukrainian people when we have learned so much from our work in Syria. I felt the duty to share our experience and help alleviate the suffering of the Ukrainian people. This is why we are starting our medical mission in Ukraine. This is our vision, mission and promise, to help everyone suffering in the world.”
If you would like to support our work in Ukraine, please click here.
Helping Abd Al Rahman Walk Again After Debilitating Injury
15 year old Abd Al Rahman Alahmad exclaimed, “I can’t feel my feet dad!” when he came out of a coma and found both of his feet in casts.
Abd Al Rahman had been filling the water tanks on his home’s rooftop when he fell from nearly 23 feet high. He was immediately taken to the hospital for emergency care.
Once his condition was stabilized, Abd Al Rahman was discharged from the hospital. He was then admitted to the Bab Al Hawa Rehabilitation Center for physiotherapy to help strengthen his left foot after developing foot drop resulting from his fractures.
The physiotherapy team welcomed Abd Al Rahman and gave his family hope that he would make a full recovery. After several physical therapy sessions, he began to move his injured foot. As Abd Al Rahman improved, so did his entire family’s mental health, since they had been left feeling helpless watching their son suffer for months on end.
Abd Al Rahman is now slowly returning to walking and will continue to follow up with our team until he makes a full recovery.
Thanks to your support, we have given the promise of a new day to countless patients and their families! Together, we are saving lives and building hope.
Continuing Mental Health Services in Northern Aleppo
There continues to be gap in healthcare access for northern Syrians. UOSSM is working to address this gap by providing mental health and psychosocial support services (MHPSS) at the Al Bab Mental Health Hospital in northern Aleppo.
This hospital provides care for advanced cases of mental health disorders and patients who are considered a danger to themselves and also provides other complementary psychosocial (PSS) services and activities.
In addition to providing multidisciplinary mental health services through the outpatient unit, Mental Health Gap Action Programs (MhGAP) services, and other complementary non-specialized MHPSS are provided to patients under the supervision of a psychiatrist, MhGap, and other mental health and psychosocial support professionals.
Strengthening Capacity of Reproductive Health Services in Northern Syria
UOSSM is contributing to the capacity-building of reproductive health services in northern Syria by providing special training in coordination with the UNFPA and other medical organizations. Strengthening the medical sector in northern Syria will help reduce disease and death rates among pregnant women and newborns.
The specialty training includes family planning, clinical management of rape survivors, and reproductive health protocols. It targets 76 trainees (midwives) from 18 medical organizations across 3 training centers: Azaz, Idlib, and Sarmada.
The family planning and clinical management trainings for rape survivors were completed in February. The remaining training sessions are expected to be completed by mid-March.
