Category: Humanitarian/Medical

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

CUSAP – EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE FOR UKRAINIAN DOCTORS

The Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) has supported surgical missions to Ukraine, under the leadership of Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn, since 2014 to treat those who suffered severe injuries during the Revolution of Dignity in 2013 and subsequent war in Eastern Ukraine. In 2019, a partnership between CUF and the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre was initiated to support training the next generation of Ukrainian doctors by providing comprehensive education in reconstructive surgery.

The educational aspect has seen Ukrainian surgeons join the missions of the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP) to learn first-hand how to operate in a multidisciplinary team environment and gain skills, knowledge, and expertise to help patients locally.

Since launching the educational component, over 40 Ukrainian surgeons and physicians have joined CUSAP missions. The doctors from Ukraine are involved in every stage of patient care; they participate in pre-operative patient consults with the Canadian medical team, observe and assist in surgeries, and help care for patients after their operations. The Ukrainian doctors also gain in-depth knowledge of each patient’s treatment plan, which includes follow-up procedures completed in Ukraine as part of the multi-stage surgical plan.

Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn believes that surgery is an important aspect of the humanitarian initiative, but an overarching goal is to build capacity in Ukraine, so that doctors can become self-sufficient and perform advanced procedures locally going forward.

Ukrainian surgeons are extremely grateful for the opportunity to enhance their practical and professional skills and benefit from observerships and mentorships with Canadian volunteers.

A few words from some of the Ukrainian surgeons…

Providing advanced hands-on surgical experience to Ukrainian doctors in the time of war is crucial. We are grateful to all who supported and continue to support CUSAP, and we value our partnership with the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Together, we can make a real difference and bring hope and healing through life-changing surgeries and education!

Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program – CUSAP is a humanitarian surgical aid initiative that provides life-changing care to patients affected by the war in Ukraine. To learn more and support, follow the link.

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) – founded in 1995, CUF has a strong track record of providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine in the areas of healthcare, education and civil society. CUF collaborates with aid providers in Ukraine, Canada, and beyond to maximize impact and cost-effectiveness of your support. For more information, please follow the link.

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF CUSAP VOLUNTEERS

Follow the team and experience a day in the life of volunteers of the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program, supported by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation. Watch as the multidisciplinary group of surgeons, anesthesiologists, internists, and nurses undertake highly complex procedures and look after the patients’ health with skill and compassion. For each mission, CUSAP surgeons perform dozens of extremely complicated surgeries that can last up to ten hours. Highly skilled internists and nurses monitor the patients’ condition to ensure they heal and thrive after surgeries. The medical professionals are assisted by a group of support staff, who allow everything from transport to tech to run smoothly. Each member of the CUSAP initiative plays an integral role in ensuring the success of the missions.

This fifth humanitarian surgical mission in Poland, was joined by eleven surgeons, five anesthetists, five intensivists, thirteen operating room nurses, seventeen ward nurses, an occupation therapist, and a psychologist. The team works around the clock to deliver quality care to injured Ukrainians. Everything is planned and executed with the utmost care and precision, from scheduling surgeries, ordering medications, and coordinating with Polish and Ukrainian officials.

We are deeply grateful that CUSAP volunteers are able to commit their time and skills to this program. It is only because of their dedication and passion that this humanitarian assistance program can exist. They are indeed providing transformative care to so many.

Hundreds of volunteers and thousands of donors have been involved in the CUSAP initiative, impacting the lives of Ukrainian victims of war. We invite you to make your mark of hope by donating today to support CUSAP. Together, we can make a real difference and bring hope and healing through life-changing surgeries!

Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program – CUSAP is a humanitarian surgical aid initiative that provides life-changing care to patients affected by the war in Ukraine. To learn more and support, follow the link.

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) – founded in 1995, CUF has a strong track record of providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine in the areas of healthcare, education and civil society. CUF collaborates with aid providers in Ukraine, Canada, and beyond to maximize impact and cost-effectiveness of your support. For more information, please follow the link.

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

CANADA UKRAINE SURGICAL AID PROGRAM – CUSAP WELCOMES THE AMBASSADOR OF CANADA TO UKRAINE IN POLAND

Her Excellency Natalka Cmoc, the Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine, and the CUSAP team.

On Thursday, April 25th, we were honoured to welcome Her Excellency Natalka Cmoc, the Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine, on the fifth mission of the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP).

The Ambassador was greeted at the mission host hospital, Powiatowy Zespół Zakładów Opieki Zdrowotnei, in Czeladź, Poland, where CUSAP missions have been held since the fall of 2022. Hospital Administration and the Polish medical team spoke to the Ambassador about how meaningful it is to them to host the CUSAP missions and be a part of the team assisting Ukrainians in the time of war.

Ambassador Cmoc toured the ward, which the Polish team refers to as the “Canada wing,” and met with Ukrainian patients, who shared their personal stories and how eagerly they await the next steps in their recovery. 

The Ambassador spoke to the CUSAP multidisciplinary medical team and thanked them for volunteering their time and skills to help Ukraine’s victims of war. Only 12% of CUSAP medical professionals are of Ukrainian background, others are returning volunteers, who are driven by the overwhelming need in Ukraine. All of our dedicated medical staff are passionate about the impact their work has on the quality of life of so many patients.

Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn, founder and head surgeon of CUSAP, spoke about the education component of these missions. He explained that surgeons and physicians from Ukraine join our volunteers to observe, assist, learn new technologies, and acquire skills and knowledge to bring back to Ukraine to help patients locally.

Olesia Luciw-Andryjowycz, a Director on the Board of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation, which has funded these surgical missions since 2014, thanked Ambassador Cmoc for a very special visit to the fifth CUSAP mission and for witnessing our volunteers’ work first-hand. She also showed her appreciation to the hospital management for opening their doors to the Canadian team and Ukrainian patients.

Ambassador Cmoc said, “The Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program is an outstanding example of how Canadian volunteers support Ukrainian doctors and Ukrainian patients. In the past 10 years, volunteer medical professionals from Canada have provided invaluable support to more than 280 trauma patients from Ukraine. This is remarkable cooperation – Ukrainian doctors collect complete medical history for every patient and help coordinate preparation for the surgeries, take part in the surgeries and oversee the rehabilitation. Under the impact of war, they are the people who will take trauma care and post-trauma reconstruction in Ukraine to a new level. The surgeries here are life-changing. Ukrainian patients would not be able to receive full treatment like this in Ukraine at this time. Every case is very complex, but all the patients without exception are optimistic and incredibly strong. They know they are not alone and in good hands. I wholeheartedly wish them full recovery. According to the surgeons, several years ago most of the patients in these missions were veterans. Now there are more and more civilians with severe traumas. It reflects the scale and toll of Russian war in Ukraine.”

Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program – CUSAP is a humanitarian surgical aid initiative that provides life-changing care to patients affected by the war in Ukraine. To learn more and support, follow the link.

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) – founded in 1995, CUF has a strong track record of providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine in the areas of healthcare, education and civil society. CUF collaborates with aid providers in Ukraine, Canada, and beyond to maximize impact and cost-effectiveness of your support. For more information, please follow the link.

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

ONE PATIENT’S JOURNEY WITH THE CANADA UKRAINE SURGICAL AID PROGRAM

The Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP) provides comprehensive surgical assistance to Ukraine’s victims of war. CUSAP takes on the most complicated patient cases from the Russian invasion that, at this time, would not be able to receive full treatment in Ukraine. All patients treated on CUSAP surgical missions have suffered ballistic trauma from firearms or munition.

Since the establishment of CUSAP in 2014, a multidisciplinary team of Canadian medics has treated 286 patients with multiple complex injuries, each requiring several operations and procedures.

Serhii was a patient on missions 3 (April 2023) and 4 (September 2023) in Poland. He suffered a mine-blast injury on November 24, 2022. Serhii was left with severe damage to his spine, a shrapnel injury to the back wall of his chest, and serious trauma to his upper and lower extremities, including a traumatic amputation of his lower left leg and a gunshot fracture of his right femur and left humerus and scapula. He also sustained shrapnel injuries to both forearms. 

Those of us without medical training cannot fully understand the extent of Serhii’s injuries. However, we can all sympathize with his horrific experience and long and challenging journey to recovery.

With the care and skill of the CUSAP team and Serhii’s resilience and determination, Serhii has now taken his first steps since the injury.

Serhii upon arrival to CUSAP’s 3d mission in Spring 2023
Serhii at mission 4, Fall 2023

Serhii had two very complicated surgeries during the third mission and another two procedures during mission four performed by CUSAP‘s multidisciplinary team of surgeons. His right leg was saved. This is him now:

“Serhii is representative of the people of Ukraine. He has made a personal sacrifice for his community and country and indeed the global community of such magnitude we might only imagine. I am extremely lucky to have met him, and that he was willing to allow me and our team to help him through this process. For all that he’s done and been through I am in awe and feel privileged to have participated in his care. I look forward to watching him through his recovery and to meet again someday soon.“ – Dr. Graham, orthopedic surgeon from Winnipeg who led Serhii’s case.

Over the last decade, hundreds of volunteers and thousands of donors have been involved in the CUSAP initiative, impacting the lives of Ukrainian victims of war. We invite you to continue leaving your mark of hope by donating today to support CUSAP. Together, we can make a real difference, bring hope and healing through life-changing surgeries!

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

CANADA UKRAINE SURGICAL AID PROGRAM – CUSAP ANNOUNCES ITS 5TH SURGICAL MISSION IN POLAND

The Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP), a project of the Canada-Ukraine foundation (CUF), is pleased to announce its 5th medical mission in Poland, taking place from April 19 to May 8.  

CUSAP is a nonprofit program. Its volunteers aim to provide comprehensive state-of-the-art multidisciplinary trauma care and post-trauma reconstruction to both civilian and military casualties of war in Ukraine and to support Ukrainian healthcare professionals through education in trauma reconstruction. Canada-Ukraine Foundation has funded this life-changing surgical assistance program since 2014. The upcoming April-May mission will mark the 12th mission supported by CUF (7 run in Ukraine before the full-scale invasion).

Over the last decade, hundreds of volunteers have been involved in the CUSAP initiative, impacting the lives of thousands of Ukrainian victims of war. CUSAP’s purpose is to provide patients sustainable, quality care with compassion and integrity.  

The April-May mission will have a team of 60 volunteers, including surgeons, anesthesiologists, ICU-intensive care physicians, internists, OR and ward nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists, and support staff.  
The incoming trauma patients will receive complete assessment, including psychological, necessary scans, lab work, post-operative assessment, pharmaceutical medications, and referrals for psychological and physiological rehabilitation. CUSAP patients sustain some of the most severe injuries from the war and require complex reconstructive surgeries, including craniofacial, microsurgical, orthopaedic, and extremity procedures. The entire cost of care and treatment is funded by donations to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation / CUSAP.  

In addition, a team of biomedical engineers will be partnering to create necessary 3D custom models and implants to ensure the best results in reconstructive surgeries. The team will work side by side with Ukrainian surgeons and physicians, providing hands-on training and mentorship.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the donors for their unwavering support, which has made the missions possible. Your contributions are the lifeline that allows us to change lives one surgery at a time. We invite you to continue leaving your mark of hope by donating today to support CUSAP. Together, we can make a real difference!

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

CUF-UCC UKRAINE HUMANITARIAN APPEAL AIDS THE “CITY OF GOODNESS”

“Every person is a story, and we try to ensure that every Ukrainian child’s story who we care for becomes a good story,” says Marta Levchenko, founder of the shelter and rehabilitation centre City of Goodness in Chernivtsi, Ukraine.

As a teenager, Marta Levchenko volunteered with Roma children in Zakarpattia region and with women who had experienced domestic violence. Years later, in 2018, her foundation established the City of Goodness to help mothers escaping domestic violence or living in poverty and unable to provide for their children. The shelter provides not only temporary accommodation for those women and their children but also professional psychotherapy, medical care, education, professional training and assists with finding employment, so that these women could get back on their feet and start their lives anew with their children. The mission of the shelter is to help women so that they could keep their children and be able to care for and raise them well.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the City of Goodness has also opened its doors to the internally displaced from across Ukraine, including the territories occupied by the Russian Federation.

The Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal — a joint effort of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) — has recently provided a grant to the City of Goodness. The grant has helped provide shelter, food, and medicines to 400 people, including internally displaced women with children, the elderly, victims of domestic violence, and orphans from Odesa and Mykolaiv regions. The shelter has also taken in 35 homeless pets that have since become therapy animals to young residents of the City of Goodness.

Additionally, with the funds raised at a concert in Montreal for the City of Goodness, another grant was given to the shelter to help cover the construction of a centralized water and sewage system for their new building (hospice) as well as an elevator platform.

Sofia Yatsyuk, organizer of the fundraiser in Montreal, visiting the “City of Goodness”

The City of Goodness is a shelter and rehabilitation center that sets a high standard and is a role model for other regions of Ukraine to follow. Managers from the social sector come to learn about the shelter’s broad spectrum of services provided under “one roof,” The organization’s all-encompassing procedures and management style have made it a success story for so many.

Last year, the City of Goodness received a medical license and became a robust ecosystem, employing psychologists and rehabilitation specialists. “Little Domna, who is being raised by her grandmother, could not sit up on her own. Recently, she stood on her own for the first time,” says Levchenko proudly. “Thanks to the donors, we were able to buy a leg implant for Domna.”

For her significant achievements in the charitable sector, Marta Levchenko was included in the Ukrainian Pravda 100 Power of Women, dedicated to women who are saving Ukraine now. 

Marta Levchenko with the residents of the “City of Goodness”

Your donations to the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal support projects like the City of Goodness, they change lives of so many for the better, they provide safety, shelter and care – thank you!

Categories
News Community/Education Humanitarian/Medical Projects

OVER 1,000 FAMILIES IN UKRAINE ARE SUSTAINED WITH GLUTEN-FREE FOOD FOR A YEAR

The World Health Organization estimates that 1-2% of people worldwide have celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder resulting from a permanent intolerance to gluten. In Ukraine, according to experts, at least 300 thousand suffer from this disease.

“People can have gluten intolerance and may not know about it for years, and at the same time be treated for diseases caused by gluten intolerance.” explains Dr. Olga Naumova, an allergist, President of the Ukrainian Celiac Society.

Fifteen years ago, Dr. Naumova united families with children suffering from celiac disease and founded the Ukrainian Celiac Society. For the past decade, Dr. Naumova and volunteers have been conducting educational campaigns, explaining the dire consequences of this disease such as diabetes and infertility.

Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, there was a new, developing market focused on manufacturing of gluten-free foods. Eleven family-run Ukrainian companies produced licensed gluten-free products – four of them are currently under Russia’s temporary occupation and three ceased to exist. Families in need of gluten-free foods, have been facing both a sharp reduction in availability and significant price increase.

A grant from the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal (UHA) – a joint effort of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, to the Ukrainian Celiac Society is providing around 1,000 specialized food boxes a month for families with children suffering from gluten intolerance over a period of 12 months.

Thanks to the support of our Donors, with this grant we are helping families with children suffering from Celiac disease and support local manufacturers of licensed gluten-free foods.

“For parents of children with celiac disease, it is important not only to receive a specialty food box but also be able to source locally these foods in the future. The grant from UHA helps these families sustain their children’s health and the health of small niche businesses,” emphasized Dr. Olga Naumenko.

Thank you to all who continuously enable a variety of humanitarian aid to Ukraine through the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal – do donate, please follow the link www.cufoundation.ca.

Background

Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal (UHA) was launched in January of 2022 by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) to coordinate the provision of humanitarian assistance quickly and efficiently to civilians impacted by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including relief for displaced persons in Europe and Canada.

To date, we have delivered over $70 million in food, medicine, emergency shelter, mental health support, surgical aid, firefighter gear, individual first aid kits, ambulances, generators, and many more types of aid, including in-kind donations.

Please click here to read further about our humanitarian relief efforts since the full-scale invasion on February 24th, 2022.

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) was established in 1995 to coordinate, develop, organize and implement aid projects created by Canadians and directed to Ukraine.

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal supports the rehabilitation of war victims.

Many injured Ukrainians, both military personnel and civilians, are taken from the frontlines to the Unbroken Centre in Lviv every week to receive specialized medical care, including reconstructive surgery, physical rehabilitation, and prosthetics care. Since February 2022, Russia has maintained their daily violent attacks on Ukraine, leaving thousands with complex injuries, many of which healthcare facilities in the country are under-equipped to treat.

The National Rehabilitation Centre Unbroken, which is already providing orthopedics services, burn care, prosthetics manufacturing and fitting, reconstructive operations, physical therapy, and mental health treatment to children and adults, hopes to increase their scope. With millions of internally displaced Ukrainians—over 11,000 of these requiring prosthetics—there is a lack of adequate health care in the country able to keep up with the demand.

With a generous grant from the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) and Ukrainian Canadian Congress’ (UCC) joint project, the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal (UHA), the Unbroken Centre will be able to purchase specialized equipment, such as treadmills, treatment tables, and complex rehabilitation systems for their patients. Additionally, the grant will go towards the training of healthcare workers to further their skills in prosthetic care, reconstructive surgery, and rehabilitation. The training will allow 10 medical professionals to travel to the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center in Toronto for 2 weeks, while hundreds of others will be given the opportunity to join online sessions related to their respective fields. 

The grant will allow the Unbroken Centre to treat more than 120 people with inpatient rehabilitation, as well as 660 people receiving outpatient care monthly—totaling over 9,000 annually. After experiencing horrific trauma, both physical and mental, thousands of injured Ukrainians will be able to recover near their families within their home country.

Images provided by “Unbroken”

The aid that the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal has been delivering to Ukraine over the past 19 months is vast and diverse, and is made possible by our steadfast supporters – thank you!

Two fundraisers were held in recent months to support the project “Unbroken”.

On July 15, an event called Art-Edude was held at the Montreal Art Centre to benefit the “Unbroken” Rehabilitation Centre through the CUF-UCC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. As a result, $6,200 were donated to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation for this project.

Currently, the City of Winnipeg is holding a fundraiser for Unbroken Centre to mark the 50th anniversary of its sistership with Lviv, Ukraine. To learn more and support, please click here.

We are truly grateful that there are so many caring and generous people across Canada who continually organize events in support of our ongoing projects.

Presentation of funds raised at the Art-Etude event, organized by Eramelinda Boquer, to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation for the “Unbroken” project.

Background

Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal (UHA) was launched in January of 2022 by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) and the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) to coordinate the provision of humanitarian assistance quickly and efficiently to civilians impacted by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including relief for displaced persons in Europe and Canada.

To date, we have delivered over $47 million in food, medicine, emergency shelter, mental health support, surgical aid, firefighter gear, individual first aid kits, ambulances, generators, and many more types of aid.

Please click here to read further about our humanitarian relief efforts since the full-scale invasion on February 24th, 2022.

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) was established in 1995 to coordinate, develop, organize and implement aid projects created by Canadians and directed to Ukraine. Read more about CUF’s history on Wikipedia and donate.

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

CUSAP 4th Life-Altering Mission in Poland – 27 patients, 32 operations, 105 procedures.

“Those suffering have absolutely no one to turn to. Ukraine is at absolute capacity,” says Dr. Antonyshyn, founder and head surgeon of the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP).

Unfortunately, Ukraine’s overburdened healthcare system cannot alone handle the immense patient needs caused by the war. They need the help of international partners like CUSAP. The complex injuries referred to our group of highly-skilled medical volunteers require a multidisciplinary surgical team and the latest technology in facial implants.

During this 4th mission held in Czeladž, Poland, 52 Ukrainian patients were consulted, and 27 were operated on. During one week, the team performed 32 surgeries, which included 105 procedures: craniofacial, orthopedic and hand / peripheral nerve.

The surgical missions are specifically designed to address craniofacial trauma, soft tissue trauma, upper and lower extremity reconstruction and burn reconstruction. 

The heart and soul of these missions is the multidisciplinary team of surgeons, anesthetists, intensivists, nurses, administrative staff, and other specialties, including psychologists and an occupational therapist. This is a well-rounded team of incredibly skilled professionals who continuously volunteer their time and expertise to treat those severely injured in Russia’s unprovoked, genocidal war on Ukraine.

“It is such a privilege to be able to help these people. They deserve all the help we can give”, said Dr. Chris Graham, an orthopedic surgeon.

Photos credit: Andrey Syrko

The hardest part of every mission is the goodbyes when we see patients being repatriated back to Ukraine. Over the course of their treatments, they become friends and family, leaving an impact on the hearts of each member of the team. The heartfelt gratitude of these patients leaves a mark that lasts a lifetime. “We had love. Now, thanks to you, we also have health”, said the wife of one of the patients.

Photos credit: Andrey Syrko

Over the 4 surgical missions held in Poland – September 2022, November 2022, April 2023 and September of 2023:

  • 95 patients operated on
  • 110 surgeries performed
  • 331 procedures
  • 14 microvascular free tissue transfers

We are very grateful to all who continuously support CUSAP’s life-altering surgical missions. We would like to extend a special thanks to the two anonymous donors of $200,000 CAD and $75,000 USD, who supported this latest mission – thank you sincerely on behalf of the 27 patients who now have a chance at a better quality of life!

Our next surgical mission is planned for the early part of 2024. Please consider supporting this vital project of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation by donating at www.cufoundation.ca.

Background

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) was established in 1995 to coordinate, develop, organize and implement aid projects created by Canadians and directed to Ukraine.

Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP) is a humanitarian surgical aid initiative established by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation together with the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in 2013 that provides life-changing care to patients affected by the war in Ukraine. The surgeries have significantly improved the quality of life of Ukrainians who undergo the operations.

Categories
News Humanitarian/Medical

CUSAP missions restore hope for a better-quality life.

It has been nineteen months since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine started in an almost 10-year-long war. Thousands of lives have been lost, and thousands are forever changed by injuries sustained either on the battlefield or while simply waiting for a bus or turning in for the night. During the twenty-first century, in the heart of Europe, this is the reality of millions in Ukraine.

Surviving a mine blast or a missile attack is a blessing, but it is also the beginning of a long and painful journey to recovery. Veterans and civilians with craniofacial, head and neck, and orthopedic injuries who cannot be further helped in Ukraine are referred to the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP), where a team of surgeons, anesthesiologists, internists, nurses, and support staff deliver complex, life-altering reconstructive surgeries and pre- and post-surgical care to give patients a chance to return to a normal life.

For a glimpse into the life-altering work of the CUSAP team, we would like to share the story of Pavlo, one of 286 patients helped since the program was established in 2014 by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation and the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre under the leadership of CUSAP’s head surgeon, Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn.

About a third of patients return for multiple missions as their injuries are so severe that their recovery is a multi-step process with many procedures performed by the multidisciplinary team of surgeons. Pavlo is one of such repeat patients. He sustained a mine blast injury on August 31, 2022. He was missing the midsection of his face with full exposure of his nasal cavity. Pavlo was referred to CUSAP and became a patient in November 2022, CUSAP’s second mission in Poland.

To date, he has undergone reconstruction of his nasal framework, followed by nasal reconstruction and lip reconstruction and revision. Between missions, he was operated on by Dr. Oleksandr Lompas, a Ukrainian surgeon, who joined several missions and operated alongside Dr. Antonyshyn and the Canadian team. Dr. Lompas managed Pavlo’s case in Ukraine and performed smaller operations to maintain his progress and prepare him for the more significant procedures on the missions.

Please meet Pavlo and see his progress with CUSAP…

Photos by Andrey Syrko

On Tuesday, September 26, Pavlo had another long set of surgical procedures done by the CUSAP multidisciplinary team to further reconstruct his midface with a forearm flap and bone and skin grafts.

As Pavlo nears the end of his recovery, there are many more who are only at the beginning. As the war continues and Ukraine fights to liberate its land and people from under Russian occupation, more veterans and civilians will need reconstructive surgical aid.

We are grateful for the generosity and steadfast support of our donors for enabling the CUSAP team to restore hope and change lives of hundreds of Ukrainians, like Pavlo, who have suffered a serious physical toll as a direct result of war.

To continue supporting the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program, please visit www.cufoundation.ca. Thank you, Дякуємо, Merci.

Background

Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) was established in 1995 to coordinate, develop, organize and implement aid projects created by Canadians and directed to Ukraine. Read more about CUF’s history on Wikipedia.

Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP) was established by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation together with the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre to help Ukrainians who were severely injured during the Revolution of Dignity in 2013 and the subsequent war in Eastern Ukraine in 2014. Since then, Canadian plastic surgeons have operated on 286 patients – civilians and veterans. The surgeries have significantly improved the quality of life of Ukrainians who undergo the operations.