24 February 2023: Statement from the ESO Executive Committee on the situation in Ukraine

On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine.

Since then, many people died, were wounded, and had to flee their country. Also, many medical professionals braved all dangers and the most adverse circumstances to ensure the well-being of the patients entrusted to them and to save lives.

We admire the perseverance, courage, and determination of our colleagues in Ukraine.

The European Stroke Organisation continues to deplore the war in Ukraine and stands by its position that the Russian invasion in Ukraine is unjustified and wrong.

As an academic society, we work together to reduce the burden of stroke and hope for peace in Europe. Our thoughts are with the Ukrainian people and our colleagues, as well as with all Russian colleagues and other citizens who oppose war and condemn this act of violence.

Armed conflict directly endangers patients and health professionals and disrupts the safe and effective delivery of treatment to patients with stroke. We appeal for a resolution of this conflict to stop the enormous suffering.

ESO has undertaken multiple measures to support colleagues in Ukraine and to aid humanitarian efforts:

Our Task Force 4 Ukraine (TF4UKR) is in close contact with colleagues within Ukraine to actively support all necessary relief efforts with a focus on stroke care. The Task Force works closely with our professional group to directly assist medical professionals and patients in need. ESO initiated a dedicated department visiting grant and assists colleagues through a dedicated email contact: ukrainesupport@eso-stroke.org.

As an additional support, ESO will again waive registration fees for any Ukrainian stroke physician (member and non-member) wishing to attend the upcoming European Stroke Organisation Conference (ESOC).

In addition, any member of the Ukrainian Anti-Stroke Association or Ukrainian Stroke Medicine Society is automatically renewed for full ESO Membership for 2023 at no charge. This guarantees first-hand information about ESO and scientific news and includes access to the ESO Stroke Education Platform (eSTEP).

Our free webinars, dedicated to our Ukrainian colleagues and translated into Ukrainian, help to disseminate state of the art information about treatments and patient care.

As a scientific society, ESO still believes in uniting people through stroke science and its mission of improved stroke care. ESO will not exclude individual members who share our values and principles from its educational offerings and scientific events.

ESO remains committed to support Ukraine and appeals for an instant and peaceful resolution of this conflict.