The war in Ukraine has taken a devastating toll on human life.
Soldiers and civilians alike have suffered from the unrelenting violence.
Towns have been destroyed, families have been torn apart, and thousands of lives have been lost.
Many of those who survive are left with lasting physical and emotional wounds.
In the middle of this destruction, medical workers risk their own safety to save others. Some of them do not make it back. Others, even after suffering grave injuries, refuse to stay away.
If Not Me Then Who?
One of those medics is Victoria Kolchina, a nurse from Orenburg, Russia.
She spent ten months working in the warzone, treating wounded soldiers on the battlefield.
Before going to the front, she was an anesthesiology nurse at Regional Hospital No. 2.
In June 2023, she volunteered to go into the war zone, determined to help those in need, according to orenburg.
Kolchina’s job was to reach severely injured soldiers who could not move on their own.
She stopped bleeding, administered pain relief, and kept them stable until doctors could take over.
She said fear was never on her mind. She knew that at any moment, she could end up like the soldiers she was helping.
That day came when she was badly wounded by a drone strike.
The drone approached from behind and hit her legs. Russian troops rescued her and rushed her to safety.
Since April 2024, she has been in treatment, learning to live with her injuries.
Despite everything, she is preparing to go back. Now using prosthetic legs, she is training to regain her mobility.
She is determined to return to the frontlines, where wounded soldiers need help the most.
"Maybe it’s just the thought, 'If not me, then who?'" she said.
For her service, Kolchina received the Order of Courage and the Medal for Saving the Dying.
