Russian Civilians Face Strain as Hospitals Prioritize Troops Wounded in Ukraine

Russia’s overcrowded military hospitals are increasingly relying on civilian healthcare facilities to treat wounded troops, leaving ordinary patients facing longer waits and reduced access to care, an investigation by TVP World’s sister channel Vot Tak has found. 

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, authorities in at least 11 regions have spent at least 3.2 billion rubles (€32 million) on treating and rehabilitating military personnel in civilian hospitals and clinics, according to the investigation. 

The strain has extended to maternity care. Maternity Hospital No. 5 in Rostov-on-Don, southern Russia, stopped delivering babies in early 2024 and began treating wounded soldiers instead. 

Pregnant women were discharged and redirected to other facilities, with one patient saying she was sent away a day before giving birth. 

“Some women were allowed to stay until the 26th, some were taken away by ambulance and some were simply thrown out,” she told local news outlet 161.ru. 

Another patient, Anastasia, told Vot Tak that disruption to maternity services made it difficult to access routine prenatal tests and forced her to pay for some privately. 

“It was very difficult and, of course, nobody cared,” she said. “Nobody cared about pregnant women.” 

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Military hospitals stretched 

Russia does not disclose the number of troops wounded in Ukraine, but the International Institute for Strategic Studies estimated that at least 611,000 Russian soldiers had been wounded by early January 2025. 

Vot Tak calculated that Russia currently has at least 58,300 beds available for wounded military personnel, but medical workers said some facilities remain severely overcrowded. 

An anesthesiologist at the Kirov Military Medical Academy in St. Petersburg told Vot Tak that one department, officially equipped with 40 beds, had accommodated as many as 86 patients at once. 

The investigation also found that some civilian hospitals operate closed wards specifically for military personnel. 

A doctor at a hospital in Siberia said staff working on such wards were required to sign confidentiality agreements. 

“Even the medical records do not contain a first name, surname or patronymic — only a number,” she told Vot Tak. 

Troops given priority 

Under regulations introduced in 2024, Russian state hospitals and clinics must provide free treatment to participants in Moscow’s so-called “special military operation” while they are on leave. 

Since 2025, participants and veterans have also been entitled to receive treatment without waiting in line. 

“A huge group of people, participants in the ‘special military operation,’ must now be served as a priority. But the number of doctors has not increased,” doctor and human rights lawyer Konstantin Boykov told Vot Tak. 

“People are sitting in ordinary queues, waiting for help, suffering, and suddenly somebody walks in ahead of everyone else. Naturally, that causes irritation and social tension.” 

Russia’s Health Ministry has said more than 70 billion rubles (€700 million) will be spent between 2024 and 2026 on rehabilitating wounded military personnel. 

At the same time, 19 Russian regions are set to cut healthcare spending by a combined nearly 107 billion rubles (€1.07 billion) in 2026, according to an analysis by independent Russian news outlet Important Stories cited by Vot Tak. The outlet’s analysis found that the reductions affected 19 of 82 regional budgets it examined.