Emergency Aid Ukraine

With the support of the alliance organization 
of Aktion Deutschland Hilft, action medeor, a 
mental health center for children was recently 
opened in the southern Ukrainian port city of 
Odessa. Around 30 to 40 children receive 
psychological care here several times a week in 
order to be able to come to terms with their 
bitter experiences in the war - and to simply 
be able to be children.

Ukraine: Children lose their lightheartedness and basic trust
"Children suffer in a special way in war because 
they not only lose their security, but also their 
light-heartedness and their basic trust," explains 
action medeor employee Max. “The war-related stress
is particularly a problem for the children”.

"They hear the alarm, the bombs, the rockets every 
day. Many of them had to leave their homes and find 
accommodation somewhere else, most of them grow up 
without a father because he is a soldier in the war. 
And some have also lost a parent in the war. 
All of that "puts a strain on the children," said 
action medeor employee. The psychological support of 
children during war is therefore a very important part 
of action medeor's humanitarian work in Ukraine.

Psychological consequences can be very different for children
The consequences of war-related stressful situations are 
again very different, depending on how the children's 
psychological system reacts. “Some react hyperactive or 
aggressive, others become anxious, others close themselves 
off and isolate themselves from the rest of the world,” 
reports psychologist Olga from the Ukrainian aid organization 
“Your City”. She is the head of the new advice center, where 
families can now find a contact point for their children. 
“With us, the children have the opportunity to interact with 
others and learn from each other without stress”.

Different therapeutic concepts are used. “We work a lot with 
art therapy with the smallest children. The children then paint 
pictures and then talk to the therapists about what moved them 
while painting,” says the psychologist. In this way, the 
therapists would find access and could carefully correct 
negative developments.

Working carefully with traumatized children
“We can have more specific therapy discussions with older children 
and young people,” says Olga. "But working with traumatized 
children always has to be done very carefully; you can often only 
address the sensitive topics gradually," explains the psychologist. 
And she also has a goal that she is working towards: "If a child 
can laugh again, communicate with others and has found ways to 
better cope with the reality of war out there - then we have done 
our job well."

Thank you for your kind donation!

“Street of Hope” is the name of the new project of our partner 
organization, Johanniter. Together with their partner ELEOS, 
they want to bring people from the Ukrainian frontline areas 
to safety. The basic idea is that literally every kilometer counts.

Increased attacks on cities in Ukraine

The fighting in Russia's Kursk region has massively worsened 
the already poor security situation in Ukraine. In the last 10 
days alone, there have been over 200 attacks with so-called guided 
flying bombs in the Sumy region, causing massive destruction.
"Evacuation has been ordered for 183 settlements in the Sumy region. 
That's more than 20,000 people, including 2,500 children," report 
the ELEOS employees. They should be accommodated in safer regions 
outside of Sumy or the regional capital itself.

Hospitallers help escape from Sumy

"We support anyone who wants to leave the region. For us, that 
doesn't just mean pure evacuation, but also support with legal 
questions and, if necessary, doctor's visits to make arrival and 
integration easier," explains Johanniter program officer for 
Ukraine.
Since most evacuees can only take few or no personal items with 
them, our paartner organization Johanniter, together with ELEOS, 
also distributes food and hygiene packages, as well as vouchers 
for supermarkets and pharmacies.

Support for people in Kharkiv and Donetsk

The partner organization of Aktion Deutschland Hilft, Johanniter 
and ELEOS are also providing humanitarian emergency aid in the 
Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. "Many of the people don't want to 
leave their homes or the region, which is why we also try to reach 
people in their hometowns if security allows it," reports project 
employee at ELEOS.
They are also being provided with food and hygiene packages as best 
as possible, with ELEOS focusing on the hardest-to-reach settlements 
near the front line.

Deployment of the Johanniter in Ukraine

In 2023 alone, our partner organization Johanniter reached over 
327,000 people in Ukraine with their relief efforts.
The focus of the projects is on emergency relief measures in the east 
and south of the country. In addition, women's shelters are supported 
in various regions, where women who have experienced sexual and domestic 
violence receive refuge and psychological care.

Thank you for your donation!