[Original in Russian. Automated translation with minimal edits.]
Military hospitals of Russia's Ministry of Defense are overcrowded due to the large number of wounded, so the participants of the “special operation” are increasingly treated and rehabilitated in ordinary civilian hospitals – free of charge and without queue. As found out “Voztak”, for those who fought in Ukraine there will be repurposed whole branches, which are given a special regime of secrecy. About the creation of such closed departments, doctors from St. Petersburg, Yaroslavl region and Siberia told the The Moscow Times.
At the end of May 2023, the authorities promised to transfer almost 5,000 beds to the Defense Ministry in 27 civilian hospitals in 11 regions, including Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don and Sevastopol. However, this decision was not officially reported, and the list of hospitals is still unknown.
In the St. Petersburg research Institute of ambulance named after I. I. Janelidze, the first wounded arrived in June 2024, said the employee of the hospital. Then there opened two medical departments for war veterans at the site of intensive care and shock therapy. They were closed: they could only get inside by magnetic passes, and the staff of these offices were isolated from the rest of the staff. The war participants occupied about 60-70 beds.
In one of the hospitals of the Yaroslavl region, according to medical workers, since 2024, there are also two closed departments for war veterans - about 60-70 places each. The traumatologist of one of the city hospitals in Siberia said that doctors and nurses of the departments where the “heroes of the SVO” lie sign non-disclosure documents. “All documentation is also closed. Even on the medical history there is no name, surname and patronymic, there is only a number, she explained.
The anesthesiologist of the Kirov Military Medical Academy in St. Petersburg said that the bed fund of one of the departments is designed for 40 people, but now up to 86 patients are taken simultaneously there. According to him, after the outbreak of a full-scale war, additional beds were installed in the corridors, and mattresses were placed in the wards instead of beds. The shortage of places, says the anesthesiologist, is observed not only in other hospitals in St. Petersburg, but also throughout the country.
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According to the calculations of “Tak”, now in Russia there are at least 58.3 thousand beds in military medical institutions. Almost 1 million wounded can be treated there every year, but there are still not enough places.
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According to doctors interviewed by the publication, the appearance of the military in civilian hospitals affects the availability of medical care for other patients: it becomes more difficult for them to get to specialists. Citizens can still receive emergency assistance, but there are problems with planned assistance.
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Doctor and lawyer in the field of human rights Konstantin Boykov notes that the participants of the “SVO” are now a priority, but the number of doctors has not increased. “And in live queues, people are sitting waiting for help, suffering, and suddenly someone comes in out of line. This, of course, causes irritation and social tension, he said.
Civilian medics, with whom I spoke, say that hospital staff are unhappy with the appearance of patients from the front due to drunken brawls, thefts and even shootings. So, in April in the Alexander hospital of St. Petersburg conflict between two patients — “heroes of the SVO” — ended in shooting. In September, one soldier stabbed another in the stomach at Peter the Great Hospital. Another wounded soldier, Vladlen Metzler, was discharged from the I.I. Janelidze Research Institute of Ambulance after fights and conflicts with patients and doctors. “Drunk, prostitutes are called. Sometimes they get mad. They give someone money and let them pass, one of the doctors describes the situation in the St. Petersburg Research Institute of Ambulance named after I. I. Janelidze. “Drink, steal. In our department, the TV was stolen, sold, got drunk, says a doctor from the Yaroslavl region.
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the total losses of the Russian army during the full-scale war by June this year amounted to 1.4 million people. Of this number, at least 450,000 people were killed, the rest were seriously injured or missing.
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