Student’s Personal Report from Sapir’s Delegation Supporting Ukrainian Refugees in Poland 

"I am a third-year School of Social Work student. Together with my colleague’s we volunteered as part of a group of ten Israeli’s, made up from volunteers from Sapir and the Israeli nonprofit-Natan. Our delegation included nurses, doctors, and social workers. We worked in the former Tesco superstore in Przemysl, Poland. This site has become the city’s main Aid Center’s for Ukrainian refugees, and it offers beds, toilets and showers, as well as daycare for children. The average stay at the Center is about two days. Here, the refugees have to manage complex decisions about their ultimate destinations to other European countries.

We collaborated with all of the multinational voluntary groups, including many Jewish organizations such as Cadena, a Jewish nonprofit network based in South America, specializing in humanitarian aid. The volunteers cooperated together to offer refugees critical services such as finding solutions for ongoing medical care. One such example is a man called ‘S’, who needs dialysis.  The local Przemysl hospital was treating him. To ensure continuity of care, we set up a plan with one of the Israeli doctor’s together with the Italian Red Cross.   They found ‘S’ a European city, offering residence together with a hospital that will provide dialysis and other medical treatment. 

Recognizing that the teens didn’t have anything to do, one of our social workers set up a Teen Hangout Room for music, singing and decompressing. Identifying another unmet need, we decided to offer the women a chance to experience some pampering.  Together with two amazing Spanish volunteers, we set up a “Beauty Station”, purchased grooming supplies, and offered services. In the past few weeks, these women have been totally focused on basic needs and survival. At the beginning, they found it hard to relax and participate. Many felt guilty about enjoying themselves, however, all of the women told us how much they appreciated the opportunity to have someone to care for them, even for a short amount of time."

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