An Evacuation Medic is a specialist responsible for rescuing the wounded directly on the front line and in frontline areas. Their primary mission is to stabilize the patient’s condition, provide urgent pre-hospital care, and ensure safe transport to a stabilization point or hospital, where medical professionals continue further treatment.

Tetiana “Rudi” Romaniuk is an evacuation medic with the Ukrainian Volunteer Medical Organization Hospitallers, which is involved in recovering and transporting the wounded from combat zones near the front line. Before the war, she worked on educational projects for young people and children in need. With the start of the full-scale invasion, she chose to interrupt her work to join rescue operations, first with the Ukrainian Red Cross and then as a volunteer paramedic.

Her testimony recounts the daily reality of medical evacuations under bombardment, the growing impact of drones on the battlefield, and the concrete needs of medical and military personnel operating under extremely risky conditions.

Before the war and the choice to go to the front

Who was Tetiana Romaniuk before she became an evacuation doctor?

Before the war, I worked as a mentor in projects for young students. I used to teach – and still teach today – young people to be pro-active for our country. At the same time, I worked with children in difficulty in camps organised for them.

At the beginning of the full-scale war, I was working at a leadership academy. A week later, the invasion began, and I decided to take a two-month break to volunteer with the Ukrainian Red Cross, helping civilians in need.

When did you realise that you could not remain a spectator?

With the Red Cross, we evacuated civilians from occupied areas through humanitarian corridors. When the Kyiv region was liberated, I continued to help people in areas close to the combat zones.

Since 2019, I had been volunteering for the Ukrainian Red Cross.

In September 2022, I realized that all this experience could be put to use on the military front. That is when I joined the Hospitallers, and I have been going on regular rotations ever since. I serve as a volunteer evacuation medic, working across all stages of the evacuation chain.

Evacuation work and everyday risks

What does your work with Hospitallers actually consist of?

I work as an evacuation medic near the front line. We evacuate both wounded and deceased from points as close as possible to active combat zones using lightly armoured vehicles. The casualties can be conscious or unconscious, and our task is to assess their condition and provide necessary emergency care.

We use lightly armoured vehicles and pickups instead of regular ambulances because they are faster, safer, and more manoeuvrable in high-risk areas. Our vehicles are equipped with everything needed to provide immediate care during evacuation.

After providing initial assistance, we transfer the wounded to the next stage — stabilisation points — where medically trained doctors can offer more in-depth and specialised care. From the stabilisation point, patients are transported by specially equipped medical vehicles, medevacs, to medical facilities located further from the front line.

When we are at the front we are assigned to a brigade. First and foremost we help the military, but if necessary we also help civilians, in keeping with our motto: ‘For the sake of every life’.

Our team often includes a veterinarian who, in his spare time between treating the injured, vaccinates and helps pets abandoned during evacuations. We then look for families who can take them in.

What are the biggest risks you face?

Bombing is the main danger, especially drones. Compared to 2022, the number and range of drones have increased significantly, making evacuations more dangerous.

In 2024, the point where we recovered the wounded was about 2 km from Russian positions. Today, we had to move it away for safety reasons.

Together with my crew during our regular rotations, I have experienced at least six close-range strikes since 2022, some of which hit our positions directly, even while we were transporting the wounded.

The human impact of war

Is there a moment that best represents what it means to save a life?

It’s always very touching when the wounded write to us after they’ve recovered. We assist them in extremely difficult conditions, and in those moments, it’s impossible to exchange contact information. Later, however, when they start following the Hospitallers‘ social media, they recognize us and send us messages of thanks.

Have social media become part of your work?

Yes. I used not to treat them much, but then I heard from my psychologist that ‘good things must be said out loud’. When I have time I try to tell what happens at the front.

Needs at the front and the role of donations

What do Hospitallers need most today?

We especially need armored vehicles and protective equipment for our medics: bulletproof vests, helmets, and ballistic plates. We also need radio-electronic warfare systems to counter drones. Medical support is also crucial, as is direct funding for our foundation, which covers all medical and logistical expenses for the Hospitallers‘ staff on the front lines.

How much does international support impact?

Hospitallers only exist thanks to donations, in Ukraine and abroad. When I arrived in 2022, they provided me with all the necessary equipment thanks to donations from national and international support.

Women, European volunteers and solidarity

What is the weight of women in defence and relief in Ukraine today?

For women it is a special moment. We can be useful not only as soldiers but also as paramedics and volunteers. Many have children and cannot enlist, but still want to contribute.

A friend of mine, for example, has two children. Every three months, she chooses to dedicate two weeks to volunteer paramedic service at the front. This is our contribution to the defence of the country, a commitment that joins that of women fighters. Today, more than 70,000 women serve in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, around 20,000 in combat roles and more than 5,500 directly in combat zones.

What is the significance of the presence of European volunteers?

There are also foreign volunteers in the Hospitallers. In my crew I often work with two Americans who have come voluntarily to help. During breaks from duty at the front, they also support civilians in areas close to the fighting.

Transforming the ruins into hope

In the moments between evacuations of the wounded and the fallen, Tetiana dedicates her free time to recreating traditional Ukrainian ornaments through embroidery and mosaics. She collects tiles from bombed sites in both liberated and occupied areas, transforming them into artworks.

She creates remarkable pieces, which are later donated to auctions, with all proceeds going entirely toward covering the medical needs of the Hospitallers.

«For me, creativity is a way to hit the reset button»

«In the moments between evacuations of the wounded and the fallen, I dedicate my free time to recreating traditional Ukrainian ornaments through embroidery and mosaics. While on duty at the front,
I collect fragments of tiles, glass, and ceramics from sites destroyed by shelling, transforming them into art.

I create these unique pieces for charity auctions, with all proceeds going toward supporting the Hospitallers.»

Art, memory and a message to Europe

What did you feel when you saw your story in the exhibition ‘Guardians of Life 4.5.0‘?

I showed everything to my mother and she is very proud. It is important that people abroad also talk about Ukraine through cultural projects and I firmly believe that art can create concrete support. Art is a way to tell the truth. Many people see only figures and news and remain indifferent. An exhibition, on the other hand, generates curiosity and brings people closer together.

The next stage of the Guardians of Life 4.5.0 project will be in Milan, at the Collegio di Milano on March 25, 2026, at 9:00 PM (CET).
The conference will be broadcast online (registration is available here) and will be held in English. The in-person event is by invitation only for Collegio students.

I will be joined by:

• Oleksandra Matviichuk, lawyer, director of the Center for Civil Liberties, and 2022 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
• Yaryna Grusha, writer and professor, committed to promoting Ukrainian culture in Italy
• Dr. Yuliya Faccin, project curator, on the role of Ukrainian art and culture today

A message to Europe

What message would you like to send to European citizens?

I would like to say, on behalf of myself and the Hospitallers: please don’t stop and continue to help us. It is very important to know that we are not alone. When we receive support from people in other countries we understand that we are not alone in the face of death, that there is someone who cares about our lives and does not care about our dead.

We would like to thank Dr. Yuliya Faccin for making this meeting possible.

www.yuliyafaccin.com