Medical supplies from WHO reach Donetsk as part of UN aid convoy
Several metric tonnes of medical aid procured by WHO reached Donetsk in Ukraine this week as part of the convoy of humanitarian aid delivered by UN agencies. WHO’s contribution consisted of HIV and tuberculosis medical products, HIV test systems and drugs to treat infections in people with weak immunity.
The medical kits will provide treatment for over 38 000 people
affected by HIV/AIDS and 5000 people affected by tuberculosis in
Donetsk and Luhansk.
In total, 62 metric tonnes of
humanitarian aid was delivered to Donetsk, consisting of
essential hygiene items, warm clothes, blankets, condensed milk
powder, drinking water and medical supplies. The supplies were
procured by WHO, the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF).
Huge strain on health care and services
“Health care and health services have gone
through a dramatic strain in Ukraine’s conflict-affected
areas,” said Dr Dorit Nitzan Kaluski, WHO Representative
in Ukraine.
Access to care is extremely constrained
due to physical destruction of health facilities, financial
difficulties with professionals not receiving payments and
patients unable to provide out-of-pocket payments, and a massive
lack of medical supplies. Displaced people affected by
tuberculosis remain unmonitored and HIV-positive patients have
no access to medication. In addition, surveillance for diseases
is inadequate and outbreaks could have catastrophic
consequences.
“With the generous support of the
European Commission, the Global Fund, and the governments of
Canada, Israel and Estonia, WHO is working together with the
health cluster partners to fill these many gaps and provide a
lifeline for people and patients needing access to care,
vaccines, and other emergency and public health services," Dr
Nitzan Kaluski added.
Among the estimated 5 million
civilians affected by the crisis in Ukraine, those living in
zones of active fighting are particularly vulnerable as they
have limited access to humanitarian assistance. The inter-agency
UN convoy is only one of the many initiatives the UN and its
humanitarian partners are undertaking to provide relief aid to
those in need.
Together with the humanitarian
organizations operating in Ukraine, UNHCR, UNICEF and WHO are
concerned with the absence of secured humanitarian access to
deliver aid to children and families affected by the conflict
across the country. Since March 2014, over one million people
have been displaced within Ukraine. Of these, more than 134 000
are children.
Humanitarian crisis in Ukraine: full coverage
Source:
WHO/Europe
