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A MAJOR installation of solar-powered surgical theatres in western Ukraine is enabling thousands more children to receive lifesaving operations, amid the devastation of war.
Scottish global health charity Kids Operating Room has completed the fit-out of six new paediatric operating rooms at a leading hospital in western Ukraine, a region increasingly overwhelmed by displaced families and targeted attacks.
The complex installation, which included the deployment of the charity’s award-winning solar surgery system, was frequently interrupted by air raid sirens and time spent in underground bomb shelters. Now complete however, the six new operating rooms will enable more than 12,000 additional operations to take place every year on children displaced or injured by the conflict.
The west of Ukraine has been regularly targeted by missile and drone attacks while also housing most of the internally displaced people from towns and villages closer to the front line. This, coupled with a steady increase in the number of Ukrainians returning home from elsewhere in Europe to the western regions of the country, has seen the hospital become overwhelmed.
Children suffering a range of conditions, from conflict-related trauma to everyday conditions like appendicitis and children’s cancers, were in desperate need of care.
Since the start of the war, the World Health Organization has verified almost 2,000 attacks on healthcare facilities across Ukraine, with more than 900 hospitals and clinics damaged or destroyed.
“These children can’t wait for an end to the war,” said Garreth Wood MBE, Co-Founder of Kids Operating Room, who travelled to Ukraine as part of the installation team.
“Our job is to take the side of innocent children during any conflict and to make sure surgeons have the equipment they need to keep operating safely. These new theatres represent practical, tangible support that allows local teams to continue their vital work.”
During the installation, the team- including Garreth- spent a night in a bunker after air-raid sirens sounded. The experience offered a glimpse into the daily reality faced by local doctors and nurses. The addition of these new, high-quality operating rooms removes at least one element of stress for teams who work each day under the constant threat of attack, ensuring they can focus fully on caring for their patients.
Each operating room has been designed to international surgical standards and fitted with solar-powered systems to ensure the lights never go out during an operation. The hospital’s existing theatres depend on the national grid and generators, making the new solar capability a significant step forward in energy resilience.
“These new operating rooms mean we can treat every child who needs us, even during blackouts or emergencies,” said Dr. Zoryana Ivanyuk, the hospital’s Deputy Director and Paediatric Anaesthesiologist.
“Before Kids Operating Room’s support, we sometimes had to delay vital operations. Now we have the light, space and equipment to keep working safely.”
This installation marks Kids Operating Room’s first major project in Europe and one of its most complex humanitarian missions to date. The charity has now installed 111 paediatric operating rooms across 36 countries, creating capacity for more than 200,000 operations each year.
Founded in 2018 by Edinburgh couple Nicola Wood MBE and Garreth Wood MBE, Kids Operating Room works with local surgical teams in low- and middle-income countries to design and equip specialist operating rooms for children, train healthcare professionals, and strengthen long-term surgical capacity.
The post Scottish Charity Installs Solar‑Powered Operating Theatres to Treat Thousands of Children in War‑Torn Ukraine appeared first on Edinburgh Magazine – Positive Local News in Edinburgh, Scotland.
