A woman in Ukraine was recently awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine, the country’s highest national honour, posthumously – the first time this has happened. Inna Derusova, a field medic, died on 26 February during the shelling of Okhtyrka, a city in the northern Sumy region, which borders Russia. Before she was killed, Derusova had saved more than ten lives.
Ukrainian healthcare workers have been working around the clock since Russia invaded the country on 24 February – and in unimaginable conditions. According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Health, by 16 March, Russian forces had attacked 43 ambulances and 117 hospitals. Ten of these hospitals cannot be repaired, Ukrainian officials stated.
Two weeks ago, Russian forces attacked a maternity hospital in Mariupol – the images of two pregnant women who were injured spread around the world. One of the women died, but the second gave birth to a girl, Veronika. Births in bomb shelters have become common, as have doing operations and evacuating seriously ill patients while under Russian shelling.
