SEATTLE, Wash. — Watching the war in Ukraine unfold has been hard for a local physician’s assistant.
Mishel was born in Ukraine and says she says hearing stories of pain and suffering really hit close to home for her.
“I felt very helpless and I felt like I couldn’t do anything about it,” she told KIRO 7 News.
Mishel says she began to research ways she could help and came across Global Care Force— a nonprofit organization providing primary medical care in Ukraine.
“I got in touch and everything I’d heard about previous volunteers and about the organization aligned with my goals,” she told KIRO.
Mishel, along with several other volunteers, flew to the country and spent two weeks traveling with a mobile medical team to rural villages and refugee centers.
“It was very rewarding to play a small part in making sure they’re still getting the medicines they need and the medical attention.”
The volunteers hosted eight clinics in seven locations and treated over 300 patients.
Mishel says the experience was very eye-opening.
“I think back to our first day in Kyiv when we’d hear these air raid sirens and shootings in the distance,” Mishel said. “You could see how everyone around you was just kind of used to this and this was their new norm.”
She says she listened to horrific stories of torture, loss, and hardship endured by those who live in the country, and many continue to face immense challenges today.
Mishel told KIRO 7 about one patient who had a history of high blood pressure and strokes.
“He came in with classic chest pains and we realized he needed more help,” she said. “He explained, ‘I lost my home, we are refugees in the area.’ He knew what he needed to do but he couldn’t afford it.”
In some areas, ongoing infrastructure issues forced the team to work without electricity and heat, completing clinics by using the light of headlamps.
“In one city we visited, we didn’t have clean drinking water because the Russians had damaged the local water supply.”
Mishel says she’s grateful for the opportunity to make a difference in some Ukrainians’ lives and she hopes to volunteer again sometime in the summer.
Since September 2022, Global Care Force’s Mobile Medical Clinics have served small villages in central and eastern Ukraine left without access to medical care or medications needed for chronic illnesses. Patients not only receive free medical care but are also provided free medications to last until the next volunteer team arrives.
You can learn more about Global Care Force here.
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