Cover Model to Combat Medic

As a combat medic in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Sara has seen the worst of war firsthand. With more than a year of service under her belt, she has saved countless lives and treated wounded soldiers at the hottest points of the front line.

I had the opportunity to visit Sara and her outfit at a medical stabilization point close to the front in Donetsk Oblast to learn what it was like to be a female medic in the largest war in Europe since World War II. When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Sara had already completed medical school and was working as a full-time model. In her country's hour of need, she had no hesitation in signing up to serve and put her skills to use.

Currently, Sara splits her time between a zero-line position in active combat and at a stabilization point around 3km from the front. "To work here, you need to have certain moral and psychological aspects," she asserts. "Not everyone can take it because the work is 24/7, and you have to be ready for anything."

Shortly after I arrived at the stabilization point, a wounded soldier arrived for treatment, and Sara and her team jumped into action. Coming directly from the front line, the soldier was suffering from a concussion and a chest contusion and was badly stuttering, likely as a result of a mortar or artillery attack. He'd previously come to the same facility for similar wounds. "It's just the way his psyche reacted to the missile attack," Sara explains. "I mean, one bruise, then another, for the brain, it's: God, I'm here; I'm getting rocket attacks all the time." After being treated at the stabilization point, the soldier was transferred to a trauma surgeon, where he would be looked at closer and receive an X-ray.

Once the wounded fighter received treatment and was on his way to the next facility, I sat down with Sara to talk about life at the front, as incoming artillery shells shook the walls around us. In day-to-day life, Sara acknowledges that responsibility and loneliness are two of her most significant challenges. "These are the two emotions that overwhelm you the most," she says.

War has changed her outlook on life significantly. "You live life for today," she affirms. "You no longer worry about what will happen a year from now, two years from now, some of the usual questions that were bothering you before."

Such sentiments are common to hear near the front line. But even in Ukraine, Sara explains that there are two different worlds. "A civilian will never understand what happens here, and only when he comes here, starts working here, and immersing himself in this atmosphere, only then can he understand it," she said. "And they need to realize that if they don't become active and don't start doing more for the Army, they will all end up here."

Although small, their facility is critical infrastructure to treat wounded soldiers. "As a woman, you put it all in order," she says. "But still, it is very quickly broken because there is always movement, always activity."

The situation at the front constantly changes, and medics must always be prepared to receive and treat casualties, making decisions and acting quickly. "It helps, of course, when you have a well-coordinated team," Sara says. "Guys come from the worst places, in the ground, wet in blood for days at a time. We have to give them comfort and help them as much as possible."

Sara is thankful for foreign support of Ukraine and acknowledges that without this help, the situation would be much more difficult. She also hopes for a more united and engaged coalition of support and strongly advises that Europe and America should be prepared for war and that we shouldn't brush off the fact that it could come to our shores, too. "I heard that in America, many people are building bunkers now," she says. "That's the right thing to do. I'd advise you to build bunkers. If I were in America, I would build myself one too."

Despite the horrors she's witnessed and the intense stresses of her job amidst exhausting and psychologically trying conditions, her positive attitude and energy are radiant – a shining light in a dark world.

"I've become more human and even kinder," she reflects. "I don't know how that happens, but it's true."

Interview and photographs done on location in Donetsk oblast, eastern Ukraine, 1 January 2024.