It was the day Russian forces launched their full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Inna lost the life she had spent decades building – her career as a consultant rheumatologist, her home and her sense of safety.
Three years on, as the war continues in Ukraine, and bombs still go off in Kharkiv, she is practising medicine again in London and helping other refugee health workers find their footing in the UK.
“Before the war, I thought I’d reached everything I wanted,” she said. “I had my career, my family, my home. There was never any thought of leaving.”
The small car that carried Inna, her two daughters, her parents and their few belongings across Europe.
Inna’s story traces the journey of one of more than 260,000 Ukrainians who found safety in the United Kingdom following the invasion – a journey marked by loss, resilience and the transformative power of welcome.
It also highlights what happens when skilled refugees are given the chance to contribute.
Escaping the war with help
When the war broke out, and as fighting intensified and buildings around them were destroyed, Inna and her family – her two daughters, her parents and her cat – fled Kharkiv with only a few documents and belongings, thinking that they would return home within a couple of days.
Driving for more than 26 hours through Ukraine, Moldova and Romania, the family were welcomed by strangers sharing food, safety and kindness.
“I still remember them,” she said of the volunteers who chose to help. “Like part of the family.”
After travelling through Bulgaria and reconnecting with friends she had met years earlier in London, Inna arrived in the UK in May 2022 through the Homes for Ukraine scheme, a community-led initiative that allows people across the UK to sponsor Ukrainians fleeing the war by offering safe accommodation and the chance to rebuild their lives.
Residents assess the damage to buildings in Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine. (file photo)
Starting over, one step at a time
Like many people forced to flee to another country, Inna faced barriers to returning to her profession, including language challenges and lack of recognition of her qualifications.
She began in an administrative role with the Lewisham and Greenwich Trust of the UK’s National Health Service, NHS, in southeast London.
Her NHS colleagues became what she calls her ‘work family’. They helped with her English, built her confidence and encouraged her to sit the exams needed to practise as a doctor in the UK.
“They believed in me much more than I believed in myself,” she said.
She passed all the required exams and returned to rheumatology, her chosen specialty, providing care directly to patients once more.
Of the more than 260,000 Ukrainians who have arrived in the UK since the invasion, over 60,000 are now employed across different sectors of the economy.
Building a network for refugee health workers
Inna’s journey did not stop there. Working alongside other displaced health-care professionals, she helped establish the Ukrainian Medical Charity, a national network supporting refugee doctors, nurses and health workers to access NHS employment opportunities.
Her advocacy has also helped shape the NHS Refugee Employment Programme, which assists refugees from many backgrounds into roles across the UK health service.
“Refugees want to give back to this country, and we have a duty to welcome them as well,” said Kathleen, a rheumatology clinical nurse specialist and Inna’s colleague.
Today, Inna balances work and family life in London “just like an ordinary person”, she says. What stays with her most is what she experienced in different countries, new neighbourhoods and hospital corridors: the power of welcome.
“When you’re forced to flee, it’s like your roots are cut,” Inna says. “The NHS and the people around me helped me grow new ones. That stability, that kindness, it changes everything – like the sunshine on your garden.”
