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Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program

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The Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program or CUSAP is a mission of Canadian doctors led by Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn, a Canadian plastic surgeon of Ukrainian descent.[1] Initiated by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation in 2014 following the Revolution of Dignity, CUSAP's volunteer doctors provide free treatment to patients, while the Canada-Ukraine Foundation covers operating costs.[2][3][4]

From 2014 to 2022, the mission was based in Kyiv. In 2022, with the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the surgical assistance program was relocated to the hospital in Czeładz, Poland.[5][6][7]

History

In April 2014, after the shootings on the Maidan, a Ukrainian-American physician, activist, and philanthropist Ulana Suprun, who served as Director of Humanitarian Initiatives for the Ukrainian World Congress, appealed to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation for medical assistance to Ukrainians wounded during the Revolution of Dignity.[2][8][9][10]

In March 2014, to assess the state of affairs and the possibilities of medical assistance, the Canada-Ukraine Foundation organized a trip of several representatives of the organization who had medical specialization, including Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn,[10] a plastic surgeon at Toronto's Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, professor in the Department of Plastic, Reconstructive, and Aesthetic Surgery at the University of Toronto, and a member of the Canadian Ukrainian diaspora.[2][11]

The delegation visited several hospitals in Kyiv where Ukrainians with severe injuries were treated and also visited hospitals in Donetsk.[9] After visiting at least 20 hospitals across Ukraine, Oleh Antonyshyn and the leadership of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation established the Canada Ukraine Medical missions. After eight years, it was renamed to the Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program (CUSAP).[2][9]

In November of the same year, at the invitation of Antonyshyn, 25 volunteer surgeons, anesthesiologists, and nurses arrived in Ukraine from Canada to carry out a mission to treat patients who were injured during the Revolution of Dignity and those who were wounded in Eastern Ukraine.[12][13] The medical team was assembled across Canada, including Victoria, Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Toronto. More than 60 patients from Ukraine with complex post-traumatic defects and deformities were consulted. A total of 37 reconstructive surgeries were performed on 30 patients.[2][14][15]

Activities

Between 2014 and 2020, Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn and the surgical aid team conducted five missions. During each mission, they treated about 40 patients, and by the fifth mission, the medical team was regularly consulting 100 patients.[10][16][17]

From 2014 to 2020, the Canadian Mission of Plastic Surgeons was based in Kyiv, and Canadian doctors also performed on-site surgeries in Lviv and Odesa. Over the years of the mission's work in Ukraine, the Canada-Ukraine Foundation has contributed almost 2 million Canadian dollars to Ukrainian hospitals.[18][19]

In 2016, Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn was awarded the State Award "For Merit" of the III Degree by Presidential Decree.[20]

In 2017, Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn received the M. Ochrymovych Humanitarian Award, also known as the Helping Hands Humanitarian Award, from the Ukrainian Canadian Social Services Toronto (UCSST) organization.[21][22][23]

See also

References

  1. ^ "У Польщі канадські медики повертають обличчя пораненим українцям". Громадське радіо (in Ukrainian). 2023-05-21. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Катовіце ми не бачили". Monitor Wolynski (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  3. ^ "B.C. surgeon volunteers in Poland to help war victims wounded in Ukraine | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  4. ^ Jeznach, Karolina (May 20, 2023). "Doctors Reconstruct Faces of Wounded Ukrainian Soldiers". WSJ. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  5. ^ "Czeladź – Canada Ukraine Surgical Aid Program". www.mp.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  6. ^ "Pomoc żołnierzom z Ukrainy w szpitalu w Czeladzi. Tu jest baza programu pomocy chirurgicznej Kanada-Ukraina". wKatowicach.eu (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  7. ^ "W Czeladzi trwa misja kanadyjskich lekarzy. Operują oni ofiary wojny w Ukrainie". www.eska.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  8. ^ "Katowic nie widzieliśmy". Monitor Wolynski (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  9. ^ a b c "Хірургічний десант доктора Антонишина. Як канадські лікарі допомагають робити пластичні операції важкопораненим українцям". Українська правда. Життя (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  10. ^ a b c Bonner, Brian (2020-10-17). "United by Ukraine: Meet Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn, a Toronto surgeon who saves Ukrainian soldiers - Oct. 17, 2020". Kyiv Post. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  11. ^ Vega, Tamara de la (2018-08-06). "MAHC adds plastic surgery to its surgical specialties". Huntsville Doppler. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  12. ^ "Toronto doctor leads team to help wounded in Ukraine". CBC News. November 5, 2014. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  13. ^ "Canadian Medical Mission to Ukraine". hromadske.ua. 2015-12-01. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  14. ^ "Mission: Reconstruction". Peace Arch News. 2014-12-31. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  15. ^ Diakunchak, Yuriy (2014-11-21). "Building Community. Будуємо громаду.: CUF Medical Mission to Ukraine". Building Community. Будуємо громаду. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  16. ^ "Як канадські лікарі в Польщі відновлюють обличчя пораненим українським воїнам, − WSJ". texty.org.ua (in Ukrainian). 2023. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  17. ^ "W5: An inspirational look at Canadian doctors on a humanitarian mission in Ukraine". W5. 2016-01-30. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  18. ^ Marushchenko, Myroslava. "Medical And Social Aspects Of The International Community's Support For Ukraine In The Context Of Russia's Armed Aggression". Almanac of Ukrainian Studies. 31 (31): 100–106. doi:10.17721/2520-2626/2022.31.14 – via ResearchGate.
  19. ^ "У Польщі канадські пластичні хірурги прооперують українців з важкими травмами обличчя". www.ukrinform.ua (in Ukrainian). 2023-05-01. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  20. ^ "Про відзначення державними нагородами України". Офіційний вебпортал парламенту України (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  21. ^ Guardian, Etobicoke (2017-04-17). "Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn to receive Helping Hands Humanitarian Award". Toronto.com. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  22. ^ "DR. OLEH ANTONYSHYN RECEIVES HELPING HANDS HUMANITARIAN AWARD - Diaspora - Ukrainian Echo". www.homin.ca. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  23. ^ Guardian, Etobicoke (2017-04-17). "Dr. Oleh Antonyshyn to receive Helping Hands Humanitarian Award". The Peterborough Examiner. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
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