A convoy led by the World Extreme Medicine Fund (WEMF) has successfully delivered ten anaesthetic machines from Devon, UK to Kropyvnytski Hospital in Ukraine, helping support intensive care treatment for patients suffering severe infection and trauma-related complications caused by war injuries.
The machines were donated by the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust as part of a rolling replacement programme. They travelled more than 1,800 miles across Europe before safely arriving in the Ukraine.
The delivery was coordinated through a collaboration between the Royal Devon, WEMF, Somerset Aid for Ukraine, and Ukrainian partner Stepan, who previously worked on humanitarian operations within Ukraine and is now based in Wells.
Founded by Prof. Mark Hannaford, from Devon, and Luca Alfatti, WEMF has continued to support frontline and humanitarian medical initiatives throughout the conflict, combining operational medicine expertise with practical logistics and field deployment experience.
Alongside the support from Royal Devon, World Extreme Medicine also delivers the MSc in Extreme Medicine in partnership with the University of Exeter, helping further strengthen the region’s role in advancing global and humanitarian medical education.
The initiative forms part of a wider memorandum of understanding between Royal Devon and Kropyvnytski Hospital, supported by the UK Department of Health and Social Care, focused on medical collaboration, shared expertise, and healthcare resilience.
Future plans include Ukrainian clinicians visiting Devon to share experiences and clinical learning around trauma medicine and mass casualty care.
Health Innovation and Safety Minister, Preet Kaur Gill, said: “The dedication shown by Royal Devon University Hospitals Trust, the World Extreme
Medicine Fund, and all the partners involved in getting these lifesaving machines to Ukraine is truly remarkable.
“Through our International Medical Partnerships initiative, we're not only supporting Ukrainian clinicians get the equipment they need while working under the most extraordinary pressures — we're also building lasting relationships that will benefit patients in both our countries for generations to come.”

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