Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) The EU has opened its Medevac Hub in Poland on Thursday to help with medical evacuations of Ukrainians.
Speaking at the opening of the hub, European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič, noted that the hub is strategically located in Rzeszów which has one of the closest airports to Ukraine.
The EC pointed out in a press release on Thursday that Lenarčič attended the opening of the hub with Polish and Ukrainian health ministers.
The body noted that the hub is financed through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and is part of EU’s broader evacuation plan launched in March this year.
“The Hub will offer a safe space for the patients arriving from Ukraine before they will be flown out to receive treatment in a hospital in another European country,” the Commission stressed.
It pointed out that patients will be provided with vaccination, mental health support, screening for diseases and nursing care, among other.
“The medical evacuation scheme includes two medevac flights a week, offered by Norway, and transporting patients from Rzeszów to countries offering onward treatment,” the EC noted.
Medical system strained
Lenarčič stressed that the number of injured Ukrainians continues to increase on daily basis and warned that hospitals are stretched thin.
“At the same time, the destruction of healthcare facilities deprives chronically ill patients of the treatment they need to survive… we cannot abandon these people,” he stated.
Lenarčič expressed belief that the newly opened hub “will play a key role in transferring the patients swiftly to hospitals across Europe.” He thanked the countries that offered to take part in the medical programme, stressing that it will save lives.
The Commission pointed out that the war in Ukraine is “severely restraining emergency healthcare in Ukraine, while refugee inflow has put hospitals in neighbouring countries under strain.”
It stressed that the hub will help to relieve pressure on healthcare systems in Ukraine, Moldova, Poland and Slovakia as well as increase the EU’s ability to treat patients from Ukraine.
“Since 11 March, 1,143 Ukrainian patients in need of medical evacuation have been transferred to 18 European countries, including Germany, France, Ireland, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Romania, Luxembourg, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Austria, Norway, Lithuania, Finland, Poland and the Czech Republic,” the Commission concluded.
