The recovery of 4-year-old Krystyna
When two Ukrainian sisters and their children turned to help at the Integration Center for Foreigners in Bydgoszcz, Poland, it was evident that 4-year-old Krystyna urgently requires surgery for her knee.
Sisters Maria, mother of three, and Halina, mother of two, escaped Iwanofrankowsk in Ukraine. After the bombing of their city, the women, fearing for their children’s lives, decided to take refuge in Poland. They came into the country without any plan and had to build their lives anew.
Maria and Halina reported to the Integration Center for Foreigners in Bydgoszcz, where they received help in arranging an apartment and in all formal matters. While the housing and organizational assistance were arranged, the team discovered that one of the girls – four-year-old Krystyna – has a valgus knee and urgently needs surgery that will allow her to reverse this defect of posture.
The ADRA Polska team contacted the Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Teaching Hospital in Poznań and not only helped in setting the date of the operation but also managed to speed it up by two years. Krystyna will be operated on this year.
The family also received food and two laptops for the children so that they could study remotely at a Ukrainian school. Until now, they have used phones to learn.
Currently, Halina and Maria are looking for work so that they can support their family in Poland. Women are looked after by an experienced career counsellor, and when they start working, they will be able to leave their children under the care of our specialists.
ADRA Poland supports refugees from Ukraine in becoming independent with comprehensive support, economic inclusion and social integration activities. In five integration centres, residents can use individual consultations and psychological assistance aimed at helping to alleviate stress and war trauma.
Eighty per cent of the beneficiaries of the Integration Centers are women. “They are often alone with their children. No one can look after their children when they are working or looking for services, which is why ADRA Poland provides daycare for those children,” ADRA Poland representative explained why they are providing much-needed services.
