Irish funding 'Christmas miracle' surgeries on tiny babies amid Ukrainian rubble
In one case, the hospital had run out of blood stocks prompting American Dr Ian Alexander (pictured) to donate his own blood to ensure a one-day-old baby could undergo surgery.
Under the dark shadow of war, an Irish-funded mercy mission has brought the Christmas miracle of life to seriously ill newborns in war-torn Ukraine.
Under the most extreme of circumstances, a 12-person team of paediatric surgeons has been performing life-saving cardiac surgeries on babies and children - some just a day old - in a hospital in Lviv, in western Ukraine.
In one case, the hospital had run out of blood stocks prompting American Dr Ian Alexander, 32, to donate his own blood to ensure a one-day-old baby could undergo surgery. Baby David Umrysh is recovering well.
The surgeons’ mission has been funded by Irish donations to the Chernobyl Children International (CCI) charity, whose voluntary CEO, Adi Roche, praised the medics, and those who have funded their work.
“In the midst of war, despite the gunfire and shelling, despite widespread electricity outages and unreliable water supply, these medical heroes were on the frontline,” she said.
“They took one baby after another, and have saved lives. They gave hope. Every life they save is a Christmas miracle. It’s about saving the lives of the future of Ukraine, the next generation of Ukrainians.”
CCI’s cardiac missions have traditionally been based in Kharkiv but following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago, the surgeries have been relocated to Lviv.
Despite being so far from the frontline, the surgeons have still faced incredible challenges, including shelling and outages of power and water, and lack of basic blood and medical supplies, to treat families who have been unable to flee the war because of the deteriorating nature of their child’s cardiac illnesses.
Dr Igor Polivinok, the mission’s Ukrainian lead, fled Kharkiv following the shelling of his home and hospital.
“Explosions can be heard in the distance, and you can’t tell how close it is,” he said. “We have experienced frequent bombardment but are not distracted by it.
“Even throughout the war, our medical teams have continued to operate on babies and children who have been born with severe congenital heart defects, including ‘Chernobyl Heart’, as a result of radiation.”
The team’s lead surgeon, Dr Bill Novick, has worked in several war-torn regions around the world, including in Iraq and Syria, but he said this cardiac mission has been “the most of the edge”.
He said:
“Since our team has arrived in Ukraine over the weekend, these children have put their tiny hearts in our hands and we try to make a miracle happen. The team is not deterred by the war as they know how valuable their help is.”
The mission also included the delivery of specialist medical equipment, including oxygenators that stop the flow of blood to the heart during cardiac operations. Ms Roche said it was pure example of the power of humanity to overcome evil and replace it with love.
“It is an extraordinary shard of light in the midst of a shocking time in Europe,” she said. "And it’s lovely to be the enabler of that, Ireland is the enabler.
“We didn’t have the money for the mission when we sent them in early December but we knew we could rely on the Irish people."
The mother of one critically ill young baby, who gave birth in the middle of a war, paid an emotional tribute to the surgical team who saved her child’s life.
“We are in the middle of a war, feeling so alone. The walls are shaking and the missile strikes come so often. I feared he would die, but now we have so much hope. I can now dream of seeing my baby growing up. It’s a miracle,” she said.
CCI continues to deliver vital Humanitarian aid to families and communities in the Ivankiv region north of Kyiv, and within the Chernobyl zone.
