You’ve seen the pictures. A mother carrying a child bundled in blue, her eyes fixed on nothing, her expression withdrawn. A young girl on the train, palms pressed against the window as she looks longingly at the father who will not board. A pregnant woman on a stretcher holding her swollen belly, smoke rising from the shelled-out maternity hospital behind her. The world would learn Monday the woman had died, and the baby never got to breathe. They are glimpses of suffering generated by war, but they do not tell the full story of the women and girls caught in the Ukraine crisis, a story of displacement and trauma, with risks for abuse and exploitation that can have myriad impacts on their health and well-being during this conflict and beyond. The UN has warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could be the largest humanitarian crisis since WWII, one which experts predict will hit women and girls particularly hard.”Women and girls face heightened risks due to displacement and the breakdown of normal protection structures and support,” UN Women told USA TODAY in a statement. “The contraction of routine health services and restrictions creates barriers to the provision of services and access to justice. In past conflicts, we have seen parties to armed conflict use sexual violence as a cruel tactic of war, terror, torture and political repression in order to advance their strategic objectives.”More than 70% of women have experienced gender-based violence in some crisis settings. Research shows women and girls affected by armed conflict are exposed to an increased level of traumatic experiences, which is associated with an increased prevalence of anxiety disorders and depression. While it’s too early to know the specific long-term impacts on Ukrainians, experts say the stress of sudden displacement, separation from family members, loss of home and livelihood are already taking a toll. When conflict breaks out, women with specific and daily healthcare needs and those who rely on government protections often lose access to crucial services, whether because infrastructure collapses or because it’s no longer safe to access them. The image of the pregnant woman on the stretcher underscores the vulnerabilities, for example, of women who require prenatal care.”Just because war breaks out doesn’t mean that women’s need for sexual and reproductive healthcare is suspended,” said Kim Thuy Seelinger, director of the Center for Human Rights, Gender & Migration at Washington University in St. Louis. Women who are victims of existing violence may not have protections enforced, and those seeking new ones may not be able to access them as institutions break down. Experts say women living in refugee camps are at an increased risk of gender-based violence, which can impact their physical, mental and reproductive health in the short and long-term. Men in Ukraine ages 18-60 are banned from leaving the country because they could be conscripted to fight.

All data is taken from the source: http://usatoday.com
Article Link: https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-wellness/2022/03/16/russia-ukraine-war-women-vulnerable-trauma-sexual-violence/7059192001/

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