Samaritan's Purse is equipping a local team of doctors and nurses to serve their own people in the midst of terrible conflict.
Samaritan’s Purse recently launched a mobile medical unit (MMU) to bring much needed healthcare to residents living in the embattled areas of Ukraine. Comprised of five Ukrainian doctors and nurses as well as a driver and a chaplain, the team delivers in-home care to 15 to 35 patients a day, treating conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and more. With local medical infrastructure currently compromised by the war and medications harder than usual to come by, the team’s services are offering hope to beleaguered Ukrainians.
Lillian*, 70, is especially grateful for their services. Her health is deteriorating due to her age and the prolonged stress of war.
Russian forces occupied her southeastern village in March 2022, and Lillian’s farm was not exempt.
Lillian, a widow and internally displaced person, is grateful for the care she received from the mobile medical unit.
“It was scary all the time,” Lillian said. To make matters worse, her husband passed away six months later. “I was left alone,” she remembers sadly.
In her grief, Lillian eventually made her way to Ukrainian-held territory where she stayed with her daughter. But she still mourned the loss of her husband, home, and community.
“Although I was with my daughter, I felt lonely,” said Lillian. “I had no peace and lived in despair. I wanted to be living in my own house and walking in my own garden.”
Surprised by Community
As she was walking down the street one day in her new town, Lillian noticed a sign for a nearby church. A believer in Jesus Christ since her childhood, Lillian decided to visit. There she received a warm welcome as members of the church began to pray for her and invited her to attend a Bible study.
“I tried to attend all the church events, so I would not be alone or feel sad for all I had lost,” Lillian said. “The attention and care of the church community helped me get through my pain. I started going to church almost every day and helping in any way I could—cleaning, cooking, keeping an eye on the church grounds.”
The mobile medical unit is especially welcome because the Ukrainian medical infrastructure has been compromised by the war. This pile of ruble is where a clinic once stood.
So when her health weakened further and issues with her heart became more pronounced, Lillian asked the church to pray for her. She also began taking the only medication she could afford on her small government pension.
Treated in Jesus’ Name
Samaritan’s Purse launched the MMU in Lillian’s region on February 14 of this year, treating 525 patients in its first two months of operation. In April, they also began seeing people in a stationary clinic temporarily set up inside her church. It was here, amid the sounds of frequent air raid sirens, they welcomed Lillian.
Ukrainian doctors and nurses are offering in-home care as well as providing services through a stationary clinic set up in Lillian’s church.
“When the clinic started seeing internally displaced people like myself, I was offered an appointment,” Lillian said. “Of course, I accepted. I was very happy. It has been a long time since I received such attention and respect from medical staff. They gave me qualified help and the medications I needed.
“When I left the appointment, I felt as I had become younger, and it was not even about the medicine, but about the care I received.”
Lillian is eager to be seen by the doctors at the clinic again, and gives credit to the Lord for bringing her this relief.
“I prayed to God for help,” she said. “Perhaps the Samaritan’s Purse medical clinic was the answer to my prayers.”
Hope Extended
Lillian testifies that the Samaritan’s Purse clinic, as well as her church community, have been a strong encouragement to her faith during an especially difficult time. “I am very grateful to the people who are funding this project and the staff of the clinic.”
“Our services provide not only community support and medications, but also hope.”
The MMU staffers themselves are encouraged in their service. One of our nurses first heard about Samaritan’s Purse when her daughter received a gift-filled Operation Christmas Child shoebox six years ago. Today, this mother and medical professional is delighted to be a part of our medical team and attests to how vital this service is for her as well as her patients.
“I love to provide care and see how lives are getting better; moreover, I can see the results of the treatment provided,” the nurse said. “It is very important what Samaritan’s Purse is doing in the region. Our services provide not only community support and medications, but also hope.”
Please pray for the MMU staff as they serve their fellow Ukrainians near the frontlines in Jesus’ Name. Ask that patients would find hope and that the conflict would end soon.
*Name changed for security.
