With a further shipment of 4 tonnes of medical products to Kiev on 24 March, Tulipe has now sent 25 tonnes of medical equipment and health products to Ukraine. “Today, these donations of medicines make Tulipe an important source of supply for Ukraine. Many new departures are planned in the coming days, in particular with Première Urgence Internationale and Action contre la Faim”, explains Alexandre Laridan, Tulipe’sDirector of Operations.
On 21 March this year, 9 tonnes were sent during a special operation* coordinated with the Crisis and Support Centre of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs. An A330 cargo plane made available by the CMA CGM Foundation transported these 9 tonnes to Warsaw along with 46 tonnes of other donations, meeting the priority needs expressed by the Ukrainian authorities.
Serious shortages of strategic medical products
12 million Ukrainians are now in a humanitarian emergency, including 3.5 million refugees and at least 7 million displaced people. The international humanitarian response is mainly focused on food security, health and housing. The logistical and security constraints associated with this aid are very significant, particularly as there are few national staff available due to the general mobilisation. Medical aid, and in particular the donation of medical products to Ukraine, remains essential, but the lack of organisation of the aid means that the local authorities do not always receive products in line with the needs identified, leading to a backlog of medical aid in the warehouses and serious shortages of the more strategic products. “We supply both war medicine, i.e. dressings, compresses, suture kits and injectable medicines, and more traditional medicine for refugees to monitor their treatment of diabetes, hypertension and other chronic conditions”, explains Alexandre Laridan.
Departure of the cargo plane for Ukraine on 21 March with 9 tonnes of health products donated by Tulipe (Photo Fondation CMA CGM)
Medical aid in Ukraine: contacts with local authorities and NGOs
Since the start of humanitarian operations in Ukraine, Tulipe has been monitoring the medical situation in the field on a daily basis, in coordination with its local partners. This is done in order to send the necessary products and avoid any bottlenecks in local aid. The association, which was created 40 years ago this year, works exclusively with the Ukrainian Ministry of Health and approved international NGOs. The aim of these contacts is to ensure that health products are delivered and used correctly: “We have to make choices and turn down many requests for support, even though they are often legitimate. Today, we are trying to mobilise both pharmaceutical and medical device companies to ensure that we have the widest possible range and quantity of products to supply in view of the current emergency”, explains the association’s Director of Operations.
Volunteers from health companies fill health product kits in the Tulipe association’s warehouse.
Tulipe’s action: medical aid for populations affected by health crises
Numerous organisations have discoveredTulipe’s work in Ukraine and have already decided to join and support the association’s day-to-day work in recent weeks: “Nearly 30 volunteers from partner healthcare companies have also come to our pharmaceutical establishment to provide us with invaluable assistance, in particular to manufacture our health kits for Ukraine. We’d like to thank them very much. This effort must continue over the coming weeks. We must continue to support a targeted and organised medical supply to Ukraine and neighbouring countries”, continues Alexandre Laridan. However, this vital action in Ukraine is not the only mission Tulipe is tackling. Throughout the year, the pharmaceutical company provides aid to countries affected by health crises, including Afghanistan, Lebanon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
*Readthe article from the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs.
