Alina (name changed) has been in Germany almost for a year. She left Mariupol on March 22, 2022, when it was real hell there. Her children left the city earlier and contact with them was lost for a while. Fortunately, everyone found themselves in Berdyansk. Then there was a long way: Zaporizhzhia, then Lviv, and then Europe.
Alina has tuberculosis, she has been receiving treatment at home since 2010, but when she fled Mariupol, she did not have any medicine. During the internal resettlement in Ukraine, the woman also did not have time to register anywhere. She says that when she got to a refugee camp in Germany and was asked about her illnesses and health, she was simply afraid to tell. “We didn’t know anything at all – where to make documents, what is needed, where to apply. Like blind kittens. I thought, won’t they deport me if they find out about the disease? That’s why she kept silent.”
But the medicine was needed, so she started looking for information everywhere she could. Acquaintances passed on the link to the HelpNow service Telegram, where Alina left an application. Then everything went quite quickly: she was given the contact of the nearest doctor, as well as an interpreter. The doctor immediately asked to pass all tests and fluorography. The results were quite fast, so without wasting time, she was prescribed free treatment. At first, they asked to come back in a month for a second appointment, then they extended the course for 3 months. Alina says that every time she was tested, everything was questioned in detail, and maximum attention was paid. “I was surprised at how responsible the doctors work. I was trivially late for one of the appointments – I was scheduled for 6, but I arrived almost at 7. The doctor accepted me without any complaints, although he had other patients at that time.
I also want to note the importance of documents – I didn’t have it with me, which made everything difficult at the very beginning. I contacted your service again and you helped me to renew my certificate from Ukraine. Literally in a couple of days! Recently, a doctor from Mariupol called and asked if I needed help or medicine, so I was happy to say that I already have everything I need. Thank you!”