Surgical microscope
When air raid sirens tear through the sky over Lviv, surgeons do not stop their work. The precision, focus, and composure that are essential in this profession are pushed to their absolute limits during bombing alerts in Ukraine. When a doctor’s daily work operates at the scale of the smallest structures of the human body, every form of support matters immensely. One such form of support is a surgical microscope, which arrived in Lviv at the beginning of this year.
In early March, surgeons at the Centre for Paediatric Medicine in Lviv operated on a thirteen-month-old child with complex syndactyly - a condition where fingers are fused together. It was the kind of procedure that demands absolute precision and high-quality magnification. This time, they had exactly the right tool for the job.In early March, surgeons at the Centre for Paediatric Medicine in Lviv operated on a thirteen-month-old child with complex syndactyly - a condition where fingers are fused together. It was the kind of procedure that demands absolute precision and high-quality magnification. This time, they had exactly the right tool for the job.
Surgeons at the Centre for Paediatric Medicine in Lviv operate on a thirteen-month-old child with
complex syndactyly, March 2026.
The surgical microscope arrived in Lviv in January, with the delivery organized by Zuerich hilft der Ukraine (ZhdU) through the Shipping Project. The microscope was donated by a Swiss private donor who wishes to remain anonymous. By giving this equipment a second life, the donor gave it a deeply meaningful purpose, because for the Lviv team, this microscope opens a new era of possibilities.
The Centre for Paediatric Medicine (Lviv)
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Dr. Andriy Kuzyk paediatric surgeon and associate professor at Lviv National Medical University and
Dr. Bogdan Sviatoslavovych Romanyshyn, Head of the Specialized Surgery Clinic at the Clinical Center for Pediatric Medicine during a training session with the newly received microscope.
The Centre for Paediatric Medicine is the largest paediatric facility in western Ukraine. Since July 2024, when Russian missiles hit Okhmatdyt - Ukraine's largest children's hospital in Kyiv - and destroyed its oncology and surgical wings, the wards in Western Ukraine have been filling up. Parents simply don’t want to take their ill, vulnerable children inland, closer to the front line.
In Lviv, this has meant more patients, more procedures, and an even greater need for precision equipment. The hospital handles a wide range of cases, from oncology and reconstructive surgery to vascular anomalies and congenital conditions. The full, difficult spectrum of childhood illness, now compounded by war and a healthcare system stretched to its limits. Many hospitals in Ukraine operate under conditions most surgeons from other countries cannot imagine.
“This winter was especially difficult - every time there was an alarm, there were bomb attacks from the Russian side. But we are strong. We keep operating,” says Dr. Andriy Kuzyk, paediatric surgeon and associate professor at Lviv National Medical University.
In January and February alone, the team performed four kidney transplants and dozens of complex paediatric procedures. The microscope allows surgeons to see what the naked eye cannot. Although it is a single device, every surgical department and its patients benefit from it. The device moves between departments, making it a shared resource for the entire hospital.
“This microscope provides 15x magnification and is indispensable during reconstructive and plastic procedures. It is also used in microvascular anastomoses and in the surgical treatment of oncological conditions. For our clinic, where we operate daily on children with both congenital and acquired conditions, such equipment is worth its weight in gold,” said Dr. Orest Leshnevsky, paediatric and plastic surgeon.
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Dr. Kuzyk also emphasized how crucial international support and solidarity with Ukraine are during this time of crisis.
“The administration cannot afford to buy us new equipment or devices (…) The economic situation is very bad. We are very, very grateful to every international donor (…) who supports us and helps us.” he says.
The thirteen-month-old from March was one of the first to benefit from the superpowers of this new microscope in the skilled hands of Lviv’s medical team.
Many more procedures are still to come, but now doctors can perform even more precise and safer operations, and young patients can recover more quickly. This kind of support can’t silence the sirens, but when they wail again, the surgeons have a powerful ally at their side.
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The team behind the procedures.
Surgeons at the Centre for Paediatric Medicine in Lviv
with the surgical microscope delivered by Zuerich hilft der Ukraine ZhdU.
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Bank details for transfers from Switzerland and abroad:
Recipient: Zuerich hilft der Ukraine ZhdU
Name of the Bank: Zürcher Kantonalbank Prime Tower, Hardstrasse 201, 8005 ZH
IBAN: CH75 0070 0114 8067 5394 5
BIC: ZKBKCHZZ80A
Purpose of transfer: Shipping
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