At a glance
- The war in Ukraine is straining health infrastructure and threatening public health.
- CDC is supporting humanitarian efforts, strengthening public health services, providing training, and offering scientific guidance to tackle emerging health threats, including war-related injuries and mental health issues.
- CDC's engagement demonstrates its commitment to reducing illness and death in Ukraine while bolstering global health security.
CDC Responds to Ukraine's Humanitarian Crisis
Since February 2022, the Government of the Russian Federation has carried out brutal attacks on Ukrainian cities, causing widespread destruction of infrastructure, loss of civilian lives, and the largest and fastest displacement of people from their homes since World War II. In a matter of weeks, an estimated 13.6 million people fled their homes to seek safety, either in Ukraine or neighboring countries.
To respond to the complex health needs within Ukraine and border countries, CDC quickly mobilized to support the humanitarian response efforts of the U.S. government, Ukraine Ministry of Health, regional partners, United Nations, and non-government organizations.
Every year on June 20, World Refugee Day is an opportunity to recognize the courage and resilience of millions of people who are forced to flee their homes because of violence or persecution, as well as the generosity and commitment of the communities and humanitarian partners who support them. This year, the observance is especially significant because the number of displaced people worldwide has surpassed 100 million for the first time on record. The world has reached this tragic milestone because of ongoing global conflicts and recent violent escalations, such as the war in Ukraine.
Strengthening Humanitarian Response Efforts Through Partnerships
Air strikes on key Ukrainian infrastructure have caused large-scale loss of human life and limited people's ability to buy food, drink clean water, use electricity, and remain in their homes. Over 200 direct attacks on Ukrainian health facilities, medical transportation, supplies, healthcare workers, and patients affect whether necessary healthcare services are available and safe to access. However, years of investments in strengthening core public health services and capabilities provided a foundation for the Ukrainian Ministry of Health's quick and agile humanitarian response.
Since 2010, the CDC Ukraine Country Office has supported the Ukrainian government and partners to advance global health security through workforce development such as the Field Epidemiology Training Program, laboratory network improvements, and strengthening of the Ministry of Health's Center for Public Health.
As the Ukrainian Ministry of Health and multilateral partners confront today's pressing public health priorities, CDC is leveraging leading technical experts across the agency to provide support through programmatic and scientific guidance. This includes activating an emergency response incident management structure, providing training on complex humanitarian emergencies and post-disaster needs assessments, and navigating supply chain disruptions.
Leading technical experts are also weighing in on how to prioritize and adapt existing programs to tackle emerging health needs such as war-related injuries and associated antibiotic-resistant wound infections, acute diarrheal diseases, and disrupted care for chronic diseases. To address mental health issues that the war has heightened, CDC is supporting the proposal of strategies such as a digital platform of regional mental healthcare networks available in local languages.
Collaborating to Prevent New and Emerging Health Threats
During humanitarian emergencies, normal systems of public health surveillance that help prevent disease outbreaks tend to break down because of disruptions to routine health services and challenges to tracking potential cases. Measures that reduce the spread of infectious diseases such as getting vaccinated, being in uncrowded and well-ventilated spaces, and wearing masks may be limited as people are forced to flee.
CDC is helping regional partners address health threats by enhancing screening and surveillance for diseases of epidemic potential and developing novel tools to conduct rapid health assessments. CDR Andrew Boyd, MD, a CDC Medical Officer deployed with the Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration for a short-term field assignment in Moldova to assist with disease surveillance at border crossing sites. Through targeted support, CDC collaborated to conduct a technical review of funded public health activities that the regional partners identified as priorities.
In addition, Dr. Patrick O'Connor, a CDC measles technical expert, traveled to Warsaw, Poland with the World Health Organization to strengthen surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases in humanitarian settings and to pilot rapid diagnostic tests for measles. These tests are designed to quickly detect disease, prompt public health action, and direct people to treatment.
Preparing for Recovery and Rebuilding
The violence and resulting displacement in Ukraine threaten existing gains in managing disease and expose both local and global populations to new health threats. At the same time, innovation among CDC and partners is helping to reduce healthcare challenges, strengthen global health security, and guide evidenced-based strategies for future responses.
Although the current humanitarian response is ongoing and evolving, planning is underway to determine how to resettle those who are displaced and rebuild key public health systems, such as facilities, programs, and personnel. These efforts are centered around not only restoring critical health infrastructure and medical facilities, but also making improvements that address identified gaps and provide long-term safeguards.
Locally employed CDC staff serve as vital connections that enable the agency to understand the priorities on the ground, what is working well, and how to strengthen capacity for future emergency responses.