A group of refugees who fled Ukraine this year have volunteered to help transform a Swansea hospital courtyard so that burns patients can enjoy the outdoors with their family. After arriving in the city in March, the Ukrainian refugees, who are mostly women and young children, have been hosted by local people who have opened their "homes and hearts".
Wanting to give back to the community who embraced them, Ukrainian refugees have volunteered at Morriston Hospital to help transform a courtyard garden for Burns and Plastics Unit patients who may be immobile and stuck on the ward for a long time. Thanks to the help of volunteers, these patients will now get the chance to be walked out or taken outside in beds and chairs to enjoy the garden with visitors.
Many of the volunteers have lost their homes in Ukraine and were forced to leave their partners and families behind. Bohdana Bahlay, a Ukrainian volunteer who has lived in Wales for 11 years and worked as a specialist cardiac psychologist, said that many of the refugees she volunteers with are from Eastern Ukraine which is 40km from the Russian border. "The refugees here would obviously like to be back home in Ukraine, but it is not safe as the conflict is still going on," she said. "Their homes have been blown up in the conflict."
Read more: Calls for more Welsh households to take in Ukrainian refugees as quarter of hosts could drop out
Bohdana is a member of Sunflowers Wales, a community group organised by Ukrainian volunteers which supports Ukrainian refugees in Wales. She explained that the refugees she has supported have been "absolutely amazed by the support they've received".
Bohdana added: "They’ve quickly learned to say diolch! We all want to thank the Welsh people who opened their homes and hearts to our fellow Ukrainians. The opportunity came up to help clear the courtyard, so we got involved as a group along with our refugees. It means the work can start very soon on redeveloping the area to look even better for patients.”
The project is predicted to finish by the end of the month and volunteers are hoping to help maintain the garden for patients in the future. Des Keighan, assistant director of estates for Swansea Bay University Health Board, expressed his gratitude for the work done by volunteers and said: “I am greatly humbled by the fact that the refugees are prepared to assist various projects across south Wales at what must be an extremely distressing time.”
On the benefits the garden will provide patients at the burns and plastics Unit, Louise Limbert, Powys ward sister, said: “Patients that come into us have undergone nasty burn injuries and are with us for a long period of time. People under our care will often have painful dressing changes and physio, so it’s going to be lovely for them to go outside with their family and see the sky, sun and flowers. It will give patients a big lift emotionally with everything they are going through."
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