Every day in Ukraine, surgeons face waves of patients with catastrophic internal bleeding caused by missile strikes, shrapnel, and blast trauma. Survival is not only about speed of evacuation; it also depends on what awaits the patient at the hospital. If the right tool – such as the BOWA Lotus 4 – is available when the doors swing open to the operating room, the odds of survival change dramatically.

The BOWA Lotus 4 – engineered in Germany and trusted worldwide – gives doctors that edge. It seals blood vessels quickly, reduces thermal damage to surrounding tissue, shortens operation time, and lowers the need for blood transfusions. For patients who have already survived evacuation and initial stabilization, it often becomes the deciding factor between life and death.

👉 Donate now – one coffee equals one life-saving operation: https://1forukraine.com/bowa-lotus-4/

Where in the chain of survival the Bowa Lotus 4 makes the difference

The chain of survival for trauma in Ukraine differs for soldiers and civilians, but both converge at the hospital stage, where definitive surgery stops internal bleeding.

— Military pathway —
• Field: self- or buddy-applied tourniquet to control bleeding.
• Role 1 Forward stabilization point:  under controlled conditions; medics remove the field tourniquet, provide IV fluids or blood transfusion and secure the airway. The goal is stabilization, not definitive surgery. The goal is stabilization – not definitive surgery.
• Evacuation: military ambulance or armored vehicle transports the patient.
• Role 2 Military hospital: definitive surgery, often through damage control strategies. This is where the BOWA Lotus 4 is most impactful, allowing rapid vessel sealing, precise dissection, and reliable hemostasis. From here, the most complex cases are referred to specalized centers like Zaytsev Institute.

— Civilian pathway —
• Ambulance: paramedics stabilize at the scene and rush directly to a regional hospital.
• Regional hospital: definitive surgery with the BOWA Lotus 4 to control internal bleeding in trauma caused by blasts, shrapnel, or gunshot wounds.

👉 Your support equips the exact points in this chain where lives are saved every day.

Ultrasonic precision: how the BOWA Lotus 4 works (and why it’s different)

Lotus 4 is a surgical energy device that uses high-frequency ultrasonic vibration to cut and seal tissue simultaneously. The energy denatures proteins within vessel walls, creating a durable seal while minimizing lateral thermal spread. For trauma surgery, this translates into faster hemostasis and cleaner planes of dissection.

Compared with older electrosurgery techniques:
• Monopolar cautery can produce broader thermal spread and smoke; it is effective for coagulation but can damage adjacent tissue.
• Bipolar cautery improves precision but typically requires additional steps for cutting and can be slower in multi-trauma scenarios.
• Ultrasonic sealing (Lotus 4) cuts and seals in one motion, often reducing instrument changes and shortening operative time. Vessels in the small-to-medium range can be sealed quickly, which is crucial when multiple bleeding points must be controlled in minutes.

Clinical benefits observed by trauma teams include reduced transfusion requirements, lower collateral tissue damage, and more predictable hemostasis in complex fields such as the abdomen and thorax. In mass-casualty events, those saved minutes translate into capacity: more patients reach surgery in time.

Dr. Rost Smachylo, Kharkiv: “With the Lotus 4, we save soldiers who would not have survived before. It is not just a tool – it is time, and time is life.”

Impact in numbers: from €28,000 to €1.97 per surgery

One device costs €28,000. Over ten years of daily use, it performs approximately 14,600 surgeries. That brings the cost to €1.97 per operation – less than a cup of coffee. Few humanitarian investments have such a clear ratio of input to lifesaving output.

Context helps: an emergency medical evacuation can exceed €500 per patient. Blood products are scarce and expensive. Operating room minutes are the most valuable currency in a hospital under pressure. A device that reduces operative time and blood use doesn’t just save the current patient – it creates capacity for the next one.

Compared to other high-impact interventions:

• A measles vaccine costs a few euros and prevents mortality before it starts.
• Malaria bed nets cost a few euros and protect entire households.
• Clean water projects improve community health at tens of euros per person.
The Lotus 4 sits alongside these interventions as a hospital-based solution with measurable, transparent impact per euro.

👉 One device = thousands of life-saving procedures. Help fund the next unit: https://1forukraine.com/bowa-lotus-4/

Stories from the frontline (civilian and military)

Olena, 28, a mother of two, was injured in a missile strike. Paramedics stabilized her at the scene and rushed her directly to Kharkiv’s regional hospital. There, surgeons used the Lotus 4 to seal multiple internal bleeds. Without rapid hemostasis, she would likely have succumbed to hemorrhage. Weeks later, she held her children again.

Serhiy, 23, a soldier wounded near the front, arrived at a Role 1 point with a tourniquet applied in the field. After transfusion and stabilization, he was evacuated to a Role 2 military hospital. Surgeons found abdominal and pelvic bleeding from shrapnel. Using the Lotus 4, they sealed vessels quickly and limited tissue damage. He survived the night and began rehab within weeks. For his unit, that meant one more life saved – and one more family spared the worst call.

👉 These are not isolated cases. The device’s impact compounds daily as hospitals treat round-the-clock casualties.

Zaytsev Institute – Kharkiv region’s center for advanced surgery

When local capacity is exceeded, patients who are stable enough for transfer are referred to the Zaytsev Institute of General and Emergency Surgery in Kharkiv. Within the region, Zaytsev functions as the referral center for complex trauma: reconstructive surgery, microsurgery for nerve and vessel repair, and challenging abdominal and thoracic cases that require subspecialist teams.

At Zaytsev, the Lotus 4 supports the transition from life-saving to life-restoring care. Shorter procedures, less blood loss, and minimal collateral damage translate into better foundations for reconstruction and recovery. A surgeon at the institute put it plainly: “We see the hardest cases. Without devices like the Lotus 4, many would not stand a chance.”

👉 Our inter-hospital transfer infographic shows the pathway: military or regional hospitals → ambulance transfer → Zaytsev for specialist surgery.

Transparency and trust: our six-step protocol

Trust is built when every step is visible. Our process is simple and auditable:
1) Funding confirmed → 2) Purchase from certified Ukrainian distributors (to reduce admin burden and accelerate delivery) → 3) Logistics and installation → 4) Training if required → 5) Operations begin → 6) Reporting with photos, delivery notes, and impact statistics.

This transparency reassures individual donors and unlocks institutional support. When hospitals and public partners can verify delivery, installation, and use, they are more willing to co-fund the next device. In a war setting, transparency is not a nice-to-have – it is the safeguard that keeps lifesaving equipment flowing where it’s needed most.

Institutional donors in particular demand this level of verification. Without clear reporting, large-scale co-financing rarely materializes. Transparent delivery therefore does not just reassure—it multiplies impact by unlocking matching funds from partners who would otherwise stay cautious.

👉 See our delivery updates: https://1forukraine.com/news/

Why this matters for Europe (healthcare is security)

When hospitals function, families stay. Children remain in school, communities endure, and the pressure on borders eases. When hospitals fail, displacement rises. That is why supporting trauma surgery capacity in Kharkiv is not only a humanitarian act; it is a stabilizing measure for Europe.

Health systems are levers: small improvements at critical nodes yield outsized effects across society. By funding devices like the Lotus 4, donors are not just paying for metal and microchips; they are buying time, capability, and confidence – the very ingredients that hold a region together under stress.

👉 Healthcare resilience is Europe’s true frontline. Equip it accordingly.

FAQ – BOWA Lotus 4 in Ukraine

Why buy in Ukraine instead of importing from the EU?

Purchasing locally minimizes delays. Certified Ukrainian distributors handle customs, VAT, installation, and service. This avoids weeks of paperwork. Hospitals often face shortages measured in days, not months. When a device is procured locally, it can arrive in days rather than languishing in customs clearance. Therefore, even if the cost is slightly higher, this method avoids weeks of paperwork and ensures hospitals receive the device faster. In practice, this can mean the difference between having a tool available for the next mass-casualty influx, or losing patients while waiting for clearance.

Is service available in Ukraine?

Yes. Local technicians certified by the manufacturer maintain the devices. Spare parts are available through the official supply network. This gives hospitals confidence that the device will remain functional for many years. Moreover, the service structure itself strengthens local biomedical capacity. Each repair or service visit becomes training for local staff, creating resilience within the health system beyond the single device.

How fast from donation to first operation?

Typically 6–8 weeks, depending on logistics and hospital readiness. This includes getting an offer, ordering, signing tripartisan sales agreement, delivery, installation, and training if needed. In some cases hospitals have been ready earlier and performed the first surgery within a month. A donation made today can already be saving lives within two months, sometimes even sooner when urgency accelerates the chain. With the correct funds we could establish a small warehouse to store a couple of BOWA Lotus 4 to increase the delivery time.

How many surgeries per device?

Around 14,600 over ten years of daily use. The cost per surgery is just €1.97. Consequently, every device turns donor support into thousands of tangible results. This scale is what makes Lotus 4 comparable to the most effective global health interventions. Unlike one-off donations, the impact is cumulative, day after day, year after year.

What makes ultrasonic surgery preferable here?

Ultrasonic energy cuts and seals simultaneously, minimizing thermal spread. For example, it reduces tissue damage and speeds up trauma surgery compared with monopolar or bipolar cautery. Older methods often require more time and cause broader damage. In abdominal trauma, even a few millimeters of thermal spread can damage critical structures. In chest trauma, speed and precision decide survival. Surgeons can control multiple bleeding points quickly, which is critical in mass-casualty events where time and capacity are the most precious resources. In such contexts, Lotus 4 is not a luxury—it is the difference between managing 5 patients or 15 within the same window of time.

👉 *One coffee = one life-saving operation. Help fund the next Lotus 4: https://1forukraine.com/bowa-lotus-4/

A choice that defines us

In war, every choice carries weight. Funding a BOWA Lotus 4 is choosing measurable impact and transparent delivery. It is choosing lives saved today, and communities rebuilt tomorrow. Every euro is a statement of values as much as a financial contribution.

Consider the scale. €1.97 secures a surgery that may stop internal bleeding for a mother injured in a missile strike. €197 guarantees a hundred procedures, enough to carry a hospital through a week of intensive trauma cases. €1,970 supports a thousand surgeries, shaping the fate of entire units of soldiers or neighborhoods of civilians.

• €1.97 = one surgery
• €197 = 100 surgeries
• €1,970 = 1,000 lives touched

These numbers are not abstract—they translate into real people surviving catastrophic injuries. A child hit by shrapnel who walks again. A soldier returning to his family instead of being buried with honors. Communities holding together because hospitals still function when under attack.

The choice is clear. In the face of war, you can decide to equip hospitals with tools that turn minutes into survival, and survival into resilience. As a result, communities remain intact, families stay together, and Europe grows stronger. Supporting a Lotus 4 is more than buying metal and electronics—it is defining who we are in the face of crisis.

👉 Donate now: https://1forukraine.com/bowa-lotus-4/

Technical appendix: ultrasonic surgery in trauma (for readers who want more detail)

Ultrasonic devices convert electrical energy into mechanical vibration at the instrument tip. This vibration causes frictional heat within tissue proteins, producing a controlled seal without passing current through the patient. Because lateral thermal spread is limited, collateral damage is reduced compared with many electrosurgical modes. In trauma surgery, this means safer dissection near delicate structures and fewer postoperative complications.

Time is the scarcest resource in mass-casualty events. Instruments that combine actions – cutting, sealing, dissecting – reduce the number of exchanges and allow teams to stop bleeding points rapidly. The Lotus 4’s efficiency contributes not only to individual survival but to system throughput: more patients reach definitive care in time when every minute counts.