Хвороби та їх лікування в житті українських повстанців Закерзоння (1944 - 1947 рр.)

Abstract

The article deals with diseases and illnesses of participants of the movement of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) within the territory of Zakerzonnia (1944 – 1947). The article is based on wide base on sources mostly personal origin, the memoirs and diaries of UPA’s companies. A brief review of historiography and historical sources are represented also. The author starts with telling about few theoretical remarks about history of everyday life. The Most of contemporary research papers study external questions of medicine of UPA and OUN, for example organization and functional of the Ukrainian underground health service. The author emphasized that it is very important for modern Ukrainian history to use the methods and approaches of historical anthropology.

It is stressed that Ukrainian insurgents struggled for their own health, and tried to treat diseases. The underground paramedics did everything possible for their patients. In most cases sick partisans were lying in sanitary posts in villages and special underground bunkers. Also there were insufficient professional physician personnel in the units of the UPA Medical Service. Sometimes doctors visited sick UPA soldiers in forest hospitals or temporary medical stations set up in villages. In some instances, wounded or sick insurgents and underground workers were given beds in city hospital, especially women. One of the most important tasks for UPA soldiers and medics was to obtain medications, bandages and other medical supplies.

The author also briefly describes the instances of extremely marches through snowy territory and terrible frostbites of the Ukrainian partisans. The amount of most spread diseases is also present in this article. The venereal diseases among the soldiers of Ukrainian Insurgent Army and attitude of officers towards these incidents are scrutinized also in this article. Certain attention is paid to the studying of typhus and fever among the Ukrainian insurgents and unsanitary conditions of liberation struggle. Other illnesses which the author often mentions in the article included various types of gastroenteritis, vitamin deficiency, scabies, impetigo, pediculosis and pneumonia, flu, inflammation of the joints. When drugs were lacking, home remedies had to be applied. For example, a primitive form of immunotherapy which consisted of injecting the patient, even reception from rural pharmacists.

In conclusion the author emphasized that the extreme conditions of guerrilla warfare increased the risk of the appearance of heterogeneous infectious diseases. The Ukrainian insurgents had to fight for their country in unsatisfactory hygienic conditions, which was an additional factor in the spread of sickness.