On July 16, important event took place at the largest children’s hospital of Ukraine, Okhmatdyt – the signing of a memorandum on the restoration of the hospital department after the missile attack on July 8.
FC Dynamo Kyiv and the Surkis Brothers Foundation will fully rebuild and restore the Center for orphan diseases and gene therapy for children at Okhmatdyt Hospital in Kyiv, which was damaged during the recent russian attack. All expenses will be covered by the club and the foundation.
Dynamo were represented at the event by club vice-president Dmytro Brif and commercial director Maksym Radutskyi. General director Volodymyr Zhovnir signed the memorandum on behalf of Okhmatdyt Hospital. Dynamo representatives gave him a club jersey with the inscription “Okhmatdyt” and the number 130, because this year the hospital turns 130 years old, and in return they received a touching children’s drawing, which one of the girls drew the day after the missile attack, while in a shelter during the alert. “This is much more important and symbolic than all the thanks and certificates”, – said Dmytro Brif.
The signing of the memorandum between FC Dynamo Kyiv, the Surkis Brothers Foundation and the Okhmatdyt Hospital provides, first of all, the direct restoration of the Center after the damage caused, as well as the presentation of specific plans for the reconstruction and support of the hospital by FC Dynamo Kyiv and the Surkis Brothers Foundation.
It should be noted that the Center for orphan diseases and gene therapy is a new department that was opened very recently – three months ago. Orphan diseases are rare diseases that occur once in many millions of cases. One example is SMA – spinal muscular atrophy, when impulses between the brain and muscles of a child are disrupted. About 300 cases of this disease have been recorded in Ukraine.
Currently, consideration is being given to restoring the premises of the Center for orphan diseases and gene therapy in the building where it was previously located, or converting the existing premises to another building.
It is symbolic that the signing of the memorandum took place in the half-destroyed office of the general director of the hospital, Volodymyr Zhovnir. Dynamo executives, media representatives and guests were also able to go out on the balcony and see the place where the enemy missile hit and the destruction that the nearby buildings and premises of the hospital suffered.
“We continue to do our work. Even before the full-scale war, as well as after its start, FC Dynamo Kyiv supported Ukrainian hospitals, the defense forces, people who suffered from armed aggression, – noted the general director of the club Dmytro Brif. – Recalling the day of July 8, the first thing that appeared was a feeling of incomprehension and despair: how can such acts of aggression be committed? A missile attack on a children’s medical facility can’t fit into the mind of any adequate person. Many children were in critical condition, undergoing surgeries... It was very vile. There is no explanation for this.
Therefore, as soon as we found out about what happened, we immediately contacted the director of Okhmatdyt and discussed the most effective ways of cooperation that would best contribute to the recovery of the hospital. It was decided that FC Dynamo Kyiv and the Surkis Brothers Foundation would undertake the restoration of the Center for orphan diseases and gene therapy. It is an honor for us to be involved in the restoration of this department of the hospital. All the more so since we already have experience in this regard – we completely restored the outpatient clinic in Hurivshchyna, the x-ray department in the Chernihiv hospital, helped the Kharkiv hospital with equipment, etc.
In addition, on the same day, we organized transport and provided food, water and everything necessary for the patients, parents and doctors of this medical institution. Similarly, our transport was involved during the following days.
We also discussed with the director of the hospital other ways of cooperation, those that are already active and those that we plan in the future. We are convinced that by working together we will be able to provide children with many opportunities for their treatment and rehabilitation, as well as further deepen our cooperation on rehabilitation projects.
Currently, the hospital has a commission that assesses the destruction, damages and losses, documents them and draws up the necessary acts. It is also planned to involve a project organization that will determine the technical possibility of using the premises in the future. Based on the results of this commission’s work, it will be determined whether the Center for orphan diseases and gene therapy will be restored in this building or in another one. We want our work to produce results. If it is e more efficient to move this center to the polyclinic building, we will do so”.
The general director of the hospital Volodymyr Zhovnir has commented upon the event.
“Okhmatdyt has a dream to recover and become even better, this is what pushes us to sign this memorandum. It will provide an opportunity not only to restore the department, but also to expand cooperation between the hospital and the famous club. Dynamo will be able to participate in the life of Okhmatdyt and implement the project on the territory of the hospital with their own funds. In the department in question, the infrastructure is almost completely destroyed. The body itself is currently under examination, and its further fate is not yet fully understood. Perhaps it will be demolished altogether, because its condition is very close to emergency. Thanks to Dynamo, orphan patients will be able to receive highly professional and specialized care. And this is only one aspect of our cooperation. We also talked about rehabilitation measures, psychological support and new opportunities.
Unfortunately, Okhmatdyt is currently not working at full capacity. There is a lot of damage, including in the new building. Now all communications and critical infrastructure are working – there is oxygen, compressed air, ventilation, etc. So some branches have resumed work. In particular, today is the first day that the emergency department has been operational. I believe that thanks to such friends and partners as Dynamo, the road to recovery will be shorter”.
FC Dynamo Kyiv and the Foundation could not stay away from another crime against our people by russian terrorists, as they have been systematically helping this hospital and its young patients for a long time.
“The friendship between Dynamo and Okhmatdyt has been on for years, – admitted Volodymyr Zhovnir. – We cooperate very closely in the direction of rehabilitation of children and conducting various activities. We remember how the club helped with the treatment of a girl in Spain who was injured on the head and could not walk or move her hand, but now she already plays the guitar. In addition, even before the start of the war, the club’s football players, the stars of Ukrainian football, regularly visited our hematological oncology patients to raise their spirits, motivate them and speed up their recovery. They supported and inspired them. Famous athletes feel social responsibility, help children recover and provide them comfortable conditions, because this is very important. I believe that supporting social projects is the correct position of famous athletes”.
Natalia Samoilenko, head of the Center for orphan diseases and gene therapy, told an incredible story of rescue during a missile attack:
“A week after the shelling, patients who were in the hospital when everything happened, came to us. They wanted to thank us for saving their lives, because when the alarm sounded and the explosions started, we took them to the shelter. I myself miraculously remained alive, because I was also walking in the direction of the shelter. I was lucky that at the moment of impact I was moving between two walls, and not passing by doors or windows. Only my car was damaged, which is still standing near the hospital building, – Natalia points with her hand in the direction of one of the mutilated cars. – “When people ask me why I’m not sad about the loss of my car, I’m surprised, because on the contrary, I feel happy that I’m alive”.
In addition to the reconstruction of the hospital department, the Surkis Brothers Foundation and FC Dynamo Kyiv continue to implement other humanitarian projects and provide daily assistance to Okhmatdyt with food, water and everything they need. The vehicles run continuously between the club and the hospital, delivering important cargo.
Over the recent months, our club and the Foundation donated several large shipments of humanitarian aid and products to the hospital.
This is the fourth object of medical infrastructure in the restoration of which FC Dynamo Kyiv and the Surkis Brothers Foundation participate.
The “Indomitable Outpatient Clinic”, rebuilt by the Surkis Brothers Foundation, is actively operating in Hurivshchyna.
Joint project of Dynamo and UNITED24: reconstruction of a hospital in Chernihiv
Shipment of medical equipment to one of Kharkiv hospitals.
In addition, FC Dynamo Kyiv and the Surkis Brothers Foundation have already started preparations for the restoration of one of the departments of the Cancer Institute, which treats many children who were transferred there after the missile attack on Okhmatdyt.
