Dr. Sami Hämäläinen from Finland joined the long-standing aid campaign organized by Lublin Medical University and the Society of Polish Ophthalmic Surgeons (SCOP) for Ukrainian doctors and victims of the barbaric war. In July, he donated ophthalmic equipment worth 150,000 Euro to the cause. The aid campaign, initiated after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, is sponsored by Professor Wojciech Zaluska, rector of the Medical University of Lublin.
Many donors have joined in. Among them are companies and individuals who donate specialized equipment and apparatus necessary for treatments, medicines, lenses and dressing materials. The initiators of the campaign expressed great thanks to all donors and gratitude for its generous support in many dimensions, material and educational, to the companies: Consultronix, Alcon Poland, Bauch and Lomb, Ocustar, Santen and Bayer.
Initiated more than two years ago by Polish ophthalmologists, the comprehensive assistance to doctors in Ukraine has gained recognition throughout Europe. It is being set as a model of solidarity with the ophthalmic community of the country bombarded by Russia. The Association of Polish Ophthalmic Surgeons, headed by Prof. Robert Rejdak, MD, head of the Department of General and Pediatric Ophthalmology at the Medical University of Lublin and vice-rector of the university, is being approached by companies and individuals who want to become actively involved and join in this relief effort.
– Such contact was made with us by Dr. Sami Hämäläinen from Finland, who was looking for a way to donate specialized ophthalmic equipment worth 150,000 euros to Ukrainian doctors, reports Prof. Robert Rejdak. – This is a beautiful gesture of support for a nation fighting an aggressor. Any such help gives hope of saving the eyesight of patients affected by warfare. We invited Dr. Sami Hämäläinen from Finland to Lublin to personally thank him for this generous gift. The donated equipment will go to Ukrainian hospitals through an international logistics company.
Among the equipment worth about 700,000 zlotys donated by the ophthalmologist from Finland is apparatus for performing intraocular and cataract surgeries, as well as laboratory tools and dressing materials necessary for the procedures. During his visit to Lublin, Dr. Sami Hämäläinen expressed appreciation for the generosity of Polish ophthalmologists in helping doctors and patients in Ukraine. In addition to the collection of donations, which began after the outbreak of the war, this assistance includes treating victims of Russian aggression in Lublin clinics and organizing specialized training in eye microsurgery and oculoplastics.
During his stay in Lublin, Dr. Sami Hämäläinen, stressed the importance of solidarity in helping the victims of war. – Even the smallest donation to doctors and patients counts, which strengthens their faith and hope in saving their health and lives. The more people help them, the greater this hope will become. This will help Ukrainians and Ukrainian women see that they are not alone and have many allies and allies.
Assistance from the Lublin Medical University has been ongoing since the first days of the war in Ukraine. – We offer both clinical and equipment assistance, notes Professor Robert Rejdak, head of the Department of General and Pediatric Ophthalmology. -Educational projects and scientific research are also important, which will strengthen this cooperation and provide opportunities for development in the field of surgery. The Department of Clinical Anatomy has an Academy of Excellence, where we can teach our Ukrainian colleagues various surgical techniques and procedures using a special virtual simulation, and dissection can be performed. This part of the training is supervised by Prof. Kamil Torres, Vice-Rector for Education at the Medical University of Lublin.
This gives an amazing insight for a young surgeon to be able to work and train before the actual operation. We also allow them to assist in various operations, which is of course the most important and effective way to become a good surgeon.
Cooperation with Ukraine has been going on for many decades between Polish and Ukrainian ophthalmologists. Prof. Robert Rejdak previously trained them for more than a dozen years at the European School of Advanced Studies in Ophthalmology (ESASO) in Lugano, Switzerland, which is an international education center for ophthalmology specialists. Practical knowledge of the latest technologies used in retinal surgery, glaucoma and other eye diseases is gained there by doctors from all over the world.
– Before the ESASO research and training center was established in Lublin, Polish ophthalmologists received specialized training in eye surgery in Lugano, recalls Prof. Rejdak. – Now our doctors are receiving the same training at the Medical University’s Medical Simulation Center, where there is a satellite facility where we conduct specialized courses for doctors from Ukraine, among others. Cyclical training in eye microsurgery and oculoplastics, during which ophthalmologists from Ukraine hone their skills, is conducted by Lublin and Ukrainian professors.
The university’s activities include direct assistance to war victims, including diagnostics, surgical procedures, as well as in-kind and material aid. The value of donations collected by the university for Ukrainian doctors has already exceeded 50,000 Euro, and together with the Association of Polish Ophthalmic Surgeons, well over a million zlotys.
Jolanta Czudak
