Anxious Days In The Last Maternity Hospital In Ukrainian-Controlled Donbas

Sixteen-year-old Viktoriya Sokolovska on June 28. She later gave birth to a healthy girl named Emilia. 

Doctors said they observed that the war was having an impact on pregnancies. Since the February 24 invasion by Russia, 19 of the 115 babies born at the hospital were premature, a rate of about 16.5 percent.

Doctor Ivan Tsyhanok has seen firsthand how stress and anxiety about the war affect his patients. "Labor is a process that cannot be stopped," he says.

The windows of the hospital are packed with sandbags, and the birthing rooms must adhere to a "two-wall" rule, which says the safest parts of a building are separated from the outside by at least two walls.

"Sometimes we've had to deliver babies during shelling," said Tsyhanok.

A nurse keeps an eye on Ilyusha, who arrived prematurely at 28 weeks. He is now doing well, thanks to an incubator and the clinic's care.

Maryna Tupata, 26, stands next to her 6-day-old baby Sofia.

"I had no chance to enjoy the pregnancy," Tupata says. "As much as I would have liked to walk around and enjoy it, we tried to be at home all the time, not to go anywhere." 

According to the regional governor, the Pokrovsk facility now serves the remaining population of the Ukrainian-controlled part of the Donetsk region, which numbers around 340,000 people.

Olena Derdel, 33, checks on her daughter Vanhelia. 

Iryna Salamatina, 36, kisses her son Anton.

Olena, 36, holds her baby Mykhaylo.

Not only do the doctors and nurses have to work long hours, but they are also under threat of shelling.

Iryna Budakova, 24, holds her as-yet unnamed 2-day-old boy.