Professor’s son aids wounded on Ukraine frontline
A son’s spirit of adventure meant an early Thanksgiving for Emily Robinson, MD, professor of surgery, and her family this past year.
“Chris told me two days before he left Houston that he was off to volunteer as a critical care paramedic in Ukraine,” she said. “He said he was leaving the Monday before Thanksgiving, so I told him we would change Thanksgiving to Sunday, and he could explain the news to his grandmother.”
Chris Wright, 22, had worked as a critical care paramedic in Houston for three years prior to volunteering on the frontlines of the Russia-Ukraine war.
“He has always been looking for an adventure, and I think he became interested in medicine because of what I do,” said Robinson, who is a 1993 graduate from McGovern Medical School, where she also completed her residency. She joined the McGovern faculty in 2001 and is holder of the Memorial Hermann Chair.
Wright ended up helping the Ukraine soldiers with life-saving measures for 4 months, providing specialized care. CNN reported on Wright’s work on the frontlines.
“I had to download the Signal app to communicate with him on an encrypted line. He wouldn’t take his phone with him when he was working,” she explained. “Each time we spoke, I would tell him I was worried and to come home, and he said things were fine.”
Wright was able to provided life-saving measures, such as intubation, which many Ukraine physicians are not trained on since they specialize early. He rewrote the group’s operation manuals and sourced equipment for the teams.
Wright told his mom he wouldn’t be home for Christmas because he was obligated to help the soldiers.
“He likened it to me being obligated to my patients,” Robinson said. “I could relate to that as a medical professional, but the mom in me wanted him to come home.”
Wright is back working in Houston with plans to become a flight paramedic but has not ruled out returning to Ukraine.