“I’m a fighter,” exclaimed a former Ukrainian soldier who fought to defend his country against Russian invasion but who is now a paraplegic after a car crash in Wicklow.
Mykola ‘Nick’ Polishchuk (44) has spent the last nine months fighting to stay alive following a crash on January 6th.
He was a front seat passenger in the car being driven by his wife Olena (36), with their children Mykola (11) and Vladlien (4) as back seat passengers, travelling to see Ukrainian friends living close to their current home in Tinahely.
Speaking with the help of an interpreter, Mykola, who is due to be discharged from the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH) in Dún Laoghaire next week back to St Vincent’s University Hospital, explained that when the car hit ice “life became a big question mark” both for him and his family.
All four were wearing seatbelts when the crash occurred.
The Polishchuks lived close to Kiev and moved to Ireland in April 2022 as Mykola’s sister, Inna, had been living in Arklow for more than 20 years, plus he had visited her before and “liked Ireland very much”.
Mykola was a major in the Ukrainian army when war first broke out between Ukraine and pro-Russia separatists in 2014 and served in several three-month tours over a three-year period.
He was seriously injured in the war and was honourably discharged in 2019, as he was found by medics to be no longer fit to remain in the military.
When Russian president Vladimir Putin launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Polishchuks decided to stay in the country.
But in April of that year, after having to “hide out” in the basement of their home and watching the “deep trauma being inflicted” on their children, both Mykola and Olena were pushed to make the difficult decision to leave.
The Russian army was located a mere 5km from their home when they fled. They drove, instead of taking the train due to the onslaught of bombings of the railways, to western Ukraine, then on to Romania where they then boarded a flight to Dublin.
“Inna kept willing us to leave and come to Ireland to be with her, so we did as we were left with a life or death situation,” said Mykola.
“We had become very settled here in our accommodation in Tinahely and were planning our lives around settling here. When the car hit ice, it went into a ditch and that changed everything. Thankfully, Olena and the children were not injured, only myself, but even I did not look injured. There was no blood or visible injuries but whatever way the car crashed I hit my head on stones,” Mykola said in broken English and with the help of the interpreter.
As Mykola described what happened next, tears streamed down his face while Olena wiped them away. “I was taken to St Vincent’s University Hospital by ambulance and then transferred to the Mater Hospital for urgent surgery” due to him sustaining a spinal cord injury along with damage to his bowel.
For the past three months, he has been receiving rehabilitation in NRH and is now in a powered wheelchair.
“I’ve been told by doctors here there is no more they can do for me but I’m now able to stand for five minutes with help and I have some small movement in my limbs,” he said.
Under the treatment abroad scheme, the HSE is reviewing whether treatment for Mykola in the Anagennisi Recovery and Physical Rehabilitation Centre close to Thessaloniki will be approved. The couple plan to travel on September 29th to Greece for three months of smart rehabilitation, which is multidisciplinary treatment.
“The cost of the treatment is €50,000 and so far we have managed to raise almost €2,000, but our circle of friends is small and those back in Ukraine want to help but are earning very little,” explained Olena.
The family have to pay for the treatment upfront, with a €25,000 initial payment then followed by two payments of €15,000 while Mykola is at the centre.
Their two sons will be looked after by Olena’s mother, Valentyna, while the couple are in Greece but adding to their burden as their current accommodation will no longer be available in November and then they will be moved to a hotel room “which is not appropriate for Mykola’s care needs”, Olena said.
A fundraising page has been set up by Olena on the website iDonate.
“I’m not sorry we moved to Ireland after what happened. I will walk again – I’m sure,” said Mykola. “There are no other options. I’m a fighter and I’m strong and getting stronger.”
