55-year-old Hanna Matyazh lives in the war-affected town of Krasnohorivka, eastern Ukraine, with her disabled husband and a daughter.

Hanna has always been the center of the family. She is the one who takes care of her husband and daughter doing all of the household chores. They live in a one-story house, which is heated autonomously by a stove and Anna normally takes care of heating the house (cutting wood and stocking the stove). She also enjoys working in the backyard which helps save their meager family budget and diversify their diet, which is unfortunately quite limited due to poverty.

On April 29, 2021,  Anna Matyazh was cleaning her apartment in preparation for Easter Celebration (it is a tradition in Ukraine to clean everything on the Maundy Thursday). She crawled into a chair to remove the curtains and fell down in a blink of an eye.  The lended on the left side of her body having injured the elbow and the shoulder. She felt terrible pain and realized that she is not able to move her arm. Her daughter called an ambulance, and Hanna was hospitalized in the trauma department of a local hospital.

Hanna shares, “All terrible incidents begin with little things, with carelessness, haste, and a disdainful attitude towards yourself. I was taking down the curtains so climbed onto a tall stool, and then, as I fell towards the stove and fell on my hand with all my heavy weight.  The hellish pain deafened me, it felt like my pain threshold was above my capabilitie to endure this pain. My arm was numb and was hanging down like it was boneless“.

When delivered to the hospital,  Hanna was told that she needed a surgery with installation of 2 metal plates costing over $600 which she simply couldn’t afford. (Hanna’s family consists of 3 people: her husband is disabled and her daughter is single and unemployed. The family’s only income is her husband’s disability allowance amounting to about $150. Anna is 55 years old,  which is below retirement age in Ukraine. She had to wait for another 5 years to be able to receive pension).

Hanna’s surgeon referred her to OB Ukraine knowing that OB has helped many needy patients with life-changing surgeries. Thanks to the help provided by OB Partners, Hanna had the needed surgery and her hand was saved.

Hanna shares, “When I had the surgery after the fracture, I was literally relieved. I was glad that I would be able to work in the garden again, solve everyday issues and live a full life as before. I do understand that a full recovery will take some time. I still cannot bend and unbend my arm and wrist by 100 percent, but the dynamics of recovery is positive and I know that I will soon join the ranks of the strong and healthy!”

I am deeply grateful to the donors for paying for my treatment and saving me from a passive lifestyle! You gave me my health back! After all, you do everything with your hands and it’s so great to have both of your hands functioning! Thank you for saving me from disability!” 

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By: Anna Chaban