Leaving Ukraine for a brighter future: Igor and Nataliia’s story

Igor (35) arrived in Poland with his mother Nataliia (67) in March 2023 from Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. A mechanic by trade, Igor had intended to stay in Ukraine to continue working; however, as the war continued with no end in sight his mother’s health declined rapidly. As shelling became more frequent and local medical centers ran out of medicines, Igor and his mother left with the hope of finding safety.   

"The last straw was seeing rockets fall less than 700 meters from us,” says Igor.   

The pair planned to transit briefly through Poland before moving on to Hannover, Germany. Nataliia’s condition worsened the night that they arrived in Przemyśl. Fearing that her condition was serious, Igor called the emergency services, who brought her to a nearby hospital.  

The doctors ran several tests and found a large tumor in her intestine which required emergency surgery. The biopsy later showed that Nataliia had intestinal cancer. 

When they first arrived in Przemyśl, Igor and his mother stayed in Ukrainian House, a shelter for those transiting through Przemyśl. Due to the shelter’s limited capacity, as well as the maximum stay being 48 hours, whilst dealing with his mother’s health complications, Igor struggled to find a place to stay.  

“Mom was in the hospital at that time, and I had to leave [the shelter]. On my way to another shelter, I met an Oxfam volunteer on the street. I explained my situation to her, and she put me in touch with IOM. I had no one else to turn to here.” 

Lesia and Sasha, Field Protection Assistants at IOM, helped Igor to find a care home for his mother and supported them by purchasing medication and preparing medical documents. IOM found Igor a place in Dom Pomocy Społecznej (House of Social Help) shelter, which is funded by the municipality of Przemyśl. Igor is unable to work as his mother requires constant care and support, and he is now applying to become her legal guardian in Poland. The pair will also receive cash assistance from IOM to help cover their most basic needs for the next three months.  

When asked about his plans for the future, he explains, “It is really hard to make plans at the moment; my mother’s condition is serious. She is in a lot of pain from chemotherapy, and her medicine is expensive. We will stay in Poland for the next few months, and then we will see how her health will be.”  

Although he does not yet know what the future holds, Igor is attending Polish classes three to four times per week so that he can integrate in Poland. He hopes that one day his life will have more stability and that, above all, his mother’s health improves. Nataliia will continue her treatment for six months and has since received her first session of chemotherapy.  

Igor and his mother received assistance from IOM’s Field Protection Team, who are funded by the United States Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration Bureau (PRM).  

The cash assistance provided by IOM is funded by donors such as the United States Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, the Swiss State Secretariat for Migration, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the United Kingdom’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, and the United Nations’ Central Emergency Response Fund.  

By Lauren Honey, Social Media Manager, IOM Poland.