Historic installation completed by Kids Operating Room

Today marks a major moment in the history of Kids Operating Room, as we announce the installation of six new paediatric operating rooms at St Nicholas Children’s Hospital in Lviv, Ukraine - our first project in Europe, and the first time we have ever built surgical infrastructure in an active war zone.

This milestone is far more than symbolic. It proves that even amid conflict, it is possible to deliver safe, sustainable surgical care for children. The new facilities will double surgical capacity in western Ukraine, enabling more than 12,000 additional operations every year for children displaced or injured by the war.

Since the invasion began, almost 900 hospitals and clinics across Ukraine have been damaged or destroyed. Lviv’s hospitals have become a lifeline for families fleeing the east, but resources are stretched to breaking point. These six new operating rooms give local surgical teams the space, tools and energy resilience they need to continue saving lives - safely and with dignity.

Each theatre has been designed to international standards and fitted with solar-powered systems to keep operations running through blackouts. Every detail was built for children’s care - bright, resilient spaces that can withstand the pressures of war and support recovery long into the future.

“Our role is to make sure surgeons have what they need to keep operating, even in the most challenging environments,” said Garreth Wood MBE, Co-Founder of Kids Operating Room.

“These new theatres represent hope — practical, tangible support that helps Ukrainian teams continue their vital work caring for children.”

Each theatre is state-of-the-art, child-focused and fitted with solar-powered systems to keep operations running through blackouts. Every detail was built for children’s care - bright, resilient spaces that can withstand the pressures of war and support recovery long into the future.

“These new operating rooms mean we can treat every child who needs us, even during power cuts or emergencies,” said Dr Zoryana Ivanyuk, Deputy Director and Paediatric Anaesthesiologist at St Nicholas Children’s Hospital, pictured far-left, below.

“Before Kids Operating Room’s support, we sometimes had to delay vital operations — now we have the space, light and equipment to keep working safely. It has completely changed what is possible for our team.”

Delivered in partnership with Ukrainian engineers, hospital leaders and surgical teams, the project demonstrates what can be achieved when collaboration replaces hesitation. It’s a tangible statement of faith in Ukraine’s medical community: their skill, their endurance, and their determination to care for the next generation.

For Kids Operating Room, the Lviv installation marks both a milestone and a shift. It extends our global network into Europe, proving that the same model we’ve delivered in low-resource settings across Africa, Asia and Latin America can succeed in the most complex humanitarian conditions on earth.

Founded in 2018, Kids Operating Room has now installed more than 100 dedicated paediatric theatres across over 40 countries, each one equipped to perform around 2,000 operations every year. Together, they enable hundreds of thousands of children to access the surgical care they need - care that saves lives, prevents disability, and restores hope.

In Lviv, that hope now takes physical form: six new operating rooms, built in the middle of a war, for children who cannot wait.

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