Rotary's COVID-19 Task Force has designated 21-27 August 2022 as Health Care Workers Week.
Show your appreciation to health care workers
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, health care workers have dedicated their time, energy, and skills to ensure our safety. As they provided vaccinations, administered tests, tracked outbreaks, and cared for patients, they sometimes put their own health at risk to do so.
With the pandemic far from over, we have an opportunity to show our appreciation for them.
Rotary's COVID-19 Task Force has designated 21-27 August 2022 as Health Care Workers Week. We encourage Rotary and Rotaract clubs to use this time to recognize the work of health care professionals in their clubs and in their communities.
You can show your appreciation in many ways, but a great way to start is by talking to local health care professionals directly to learn what type of support they want and need — and how we in Rotary can best respond.
On your own or with your club, you can also:
Send letters of appreciation to health care facilities or health departments
Volunteer at a health care facility or at an event
Raise awareness by sending letters highlighting health workers to local media outlets
Post about your appreciation for health care workers on social media
Honor club members who are health care workers at a meeting or event
Ask nearby medical centers if you can donate meals or baked goods
Use the templates on the RI site to honor and thank health care workers in your community. Then, share your efforts on Rotary Showcase.
We know that a strong health care system and workforce is an essential part of strong, thriving communities. Advocating for health care workers, promoting vaccinations, sharing science based-information, and collaborating with them allows us to amplify Rotary's impact and brings us closer to achieving our vision for lasting change.
Oksana Petrukh, a member of the Rotary Club of Lviv International and the new Ukraine chapter of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians, in the cockpit of her plane. Petrukh learned to fly as an activity she could do during the pandemic.
Members of the Ukraine chapter of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians during a banquet dinner at the charter ceremony in Lviv in November.
Boxes of medical supplies collected by the Hong Kong chapter of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians await shipment.
Nurses in Ukraine hold up supplies they received from the International Fellowships of Healthcare Professionals.
In the festive atmosphere of a gala dinner, Rotary members raised glasses in toasts and kindled friendships in Lviv as they welcomed a group of Ukrainians to the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians. The next day, the Ukrainian members showed visitors former Eastern Bloc aircraft at a military base that had become a general aviation field.
Just a few months later, Russian forces invaded Ukraine — and the new friendships became critical connections for support and supplies.
Rotary's global network has sent millions of dollars' worth of relief and medical supplies to help the people of Ukraine. Rotary Fellowships, which bring together members who have a shared interest or hobby, have amplified the impact of these efforts.
Members of the flying fellowship leapt into action to help their fellow pilots as soon as the war began. George Chaffey, then-world president of the fellowship, says he and other members quickly contacted the Ukrainian members, who have been instrumental in identifying the most effective ways to channel the assistance.
One of them has been Olha Paliychuk, a member of the Rotary Club of Cherkasy, Ukraine. Paliychuk, who is a doctor and working toward her pilot's license, has helped coordinate response plans through both the flying fellowship and the International Fellowship of Healthcare Professionals.
"Within a week we raised more than $12,000 and a large volume of medical supplies, all cleared through Olha," Chaffey says. "We collect what the Ukrainians tell us they need and direct it to exactly where it is needed."
Chaffey says the fellowship members based in Hong Kong have arranged the delivery of more than $25,000 overall in medical supplies. At one point, they raised more than $10,000 in just four days for urgently needed medical equipment. Fellowship members worked out the details of the shipment in a message chat that spanned multiple time zones.
"Talk about speed and how technology has made the world a small place," says George Ritchie, the 2022-24 world president of the group. "I'd like to think our fellowship was one of the quickest out of the block to help."
Medical professionals
John Philip, chair of the International Fellowship of Healthcare Professionals, says he and the group's other leaders also acted swiftly to connect with its Ukrainian members, including Paliychuk. The group quickly developed an effective approach to aid and holds weekly meetings with medical workers in Ukraine about the supplies they need.
"We only respond to the requests of medics in Ukraine, and only source and fund things through Rotary," Philip says. "Items we purchase are sent to a warehouse in Poland managed by Rotarians, who take it over the border and hand it to volunteers, who take it to the precise hospitals we specify."
One effort they've been involved with included Rotary districts in North America and Argentina that are working with a U.S.-based association of Ukrainian health care workers to ship hundreds of tons of critical medical supplies from Chicago to Ukraine.
Ski event benefits Ukraine
Even sporting fellowships have joined the effort. The International Skiing Fellowship of Rotarians organized a benefit week in Scuol, Switzerland, in March. More than 100 skiers from 16 European countries attended, raising about €35,000 (US$35,000) to buy clothing and other goods that were sent to a warehouse near the border of Ukraine for distribution.
The ski fellowship also collaborated with the Rotary Club of Bratislava Danube, Slovakia, and the Rotary Club of Coburg, Germany, to raise an additional €1 million (US$1 million) from its members. Working with the District 2240 Ukrainian relief committee, the money was used to purchase and retrofit five ambulances and fill backpacks of supplies for paramedics.
Miloš Kmety, head of the European chapter of the fellowship, says the group will continue its efforts, including buying more ambulances and equipment, pellets to purify water, and tourniquets.
Long-term solutions
Philip says the healthcare fellowship quickly realized that it would need a more coordinated, strategic response than a single funding effort. Fellowship members have heard in their weekly meetings about long-term problems developing because of how people have been displaced and the infrastructure that has been disrupted. This includes reports of children going unvaccinated and chronic health issues going untreated.
"Given a situation where there is poor water supply and inadequate sanitation, the danger of cholera and typhoid and measles and hepatitis is lurking in the background," Philip says.
At the request of Ukrainian doctors, the fellowship formed a task force to study the prolonged effects of the war on prenatal care, chronic medical conditions, and young people's mental health. It has also developed a confidential support network for doctors in Ukraine who need to process their emotions.
"The worst thing is to see doctors crying," Philip says. "They talk to us about some of their patients who shouldn't be at risk but are at risk. They have patients whose limbs have been pulled apart. They are having to remove bones with crude instruments that were used in the first World War. They are seeing people die of bleeding."
Having to respond so quickly to the events in Ukraine, Philip says, has shown the fellowship that it can mobilize to provide long-term care in response to other conflicts and natural disasters.
"We have learned so much through this experience," Philip says. "We've discovered there is a lot more we can do."
Hold onto your hat! This month, Rotarians from Canada to Mexico report how winds of hope and change are sweeping across their continent. They share several ways to make housing greener and cheaper to run, and invite you to take advantage of an array of conferences and free technical assistance to help you design excellent environmental projects.
In this issue:
Cause for hope: new laws in US and Australia, and your role in Rotary!
Guidance for green building: ESRAG’s Solar Habitat handbook, Near Zero Energy Design, and the Aug. 19 Small Wind webinar
RIP Jennifer Jones champions pollinator projects in India and North America
Aug. 20 Workshop: how to develop a Rotary Global Grant project
“Big West” Rotarians’ September 10 summits on soil, water, and green transportation
September citizen science for platypuses in Australia
How ESRAG’s Climate Task Force can help you plan powerful projects
Environment’s starring role in the August Rotary Magazine (including ESRAG celebrities)
Photo by Jeff Heie: Solar panels going up on a Habitat duplex in Harrisonburg, Virginia, US. Shared with permission of GiveSolar.
Club President Mitch Portugal is a rider! He has participated in several Rotary biking fundraisers - on the road and on stationary bikes. On August 14th he participated in the Naperville ride to support a range of that club's charities and trekked for 40 Miles!
Mill Race Cyclery in downtown Geneva was the official Bike Shop Partner of the Naperville Rotary Ride. They were at the Ride to assist with basic repairs and tune-ups.
Spotted !
Rotarian Elke Friedman spotted the North Suburban YMCA while driving and shared this image of one of our larger local projects.
Reported!
Rotarian Rick Rivkin shares this update on the ongoing deliveries from Germany to Ukraine.
We will have in person meetings going forward. To join us for a lunch meeting contact Helen, our membership person at RotaryNorthbrook@gmail.com to find out more.
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