The pain is still there

Up to now, the unit is only managing, nurturing, treating and implementing policies for 97 seriously wounded soldiers (with a disability rate of 81% to 100%). Among them, 1 wounded soldier was injured during the resistance war against the French; 67 people were injured during the resistance war against the Americans; 29 people were injured during the period of protecting and building the country. Regarding the specific disability, 90% were injured in the spine, causing hemiplegia, so they mainly move around in wheelchairs and rocking chairs. Due to the sequelae of spinal injuries, the lower half of the body is atrophied, losing sensation, so they are unable to control themselves in all activities; they also suffer from diabetes, high blood pressure, etc. There is a comrade who was seriously injured by Agent Orange... giving birth to a disabled child, which is very pitiful. Many wounded soldiers still carry shrapnel in their bodies, still lodged in their spines and heads. Every time the weather changes, the pain torments them to the bone marrow, causing painful convulsions that affect their meals and sleep.

Under the cool green canopy, rustling in the wind, are 97 people, 97 destinies who have devoted their youth to the great cause of the Fatherland. The war is over, but the consequences of war do not spare them. They continue to bear the pain caused by war. They continue to fight against illness in hospital beds, fighting for their own lives, even if they only have breath, to continue living, to contribute to the Fatherland, to the nation.

Disabled soldier Hoang Xuan Thinh, enlisted in 1961 to participate in the Quang Ngai battlefield, in a battle against a landing battalion, unfortunately a bomb exploded right where he was hiding, a piece of bomb stuck in his spine forcing him to use a wheelchair for the rest of his life. His hometown is in the Western Nghe An region where his wife is a good, hard-working and responsible person, actively participating in the militia and self-defense work. She used to sit on the artillery tray to protect the Truong Son field airport. Then carrying bullets, filling the railway tracks to serve the airport's combat, leading to her having cartilage and severe arthritis. Disabled soldier Nguyen Quoc Truong, from Ha Nam, also carries the same pain. Participating in the Southwest battlefield, a bomb fragment hit his skull, spine and lungs. He pulled up his shirt to point to his back, there was a hollow half the size of a hand that was completely gone. He said that a piece of bomb had dug deep into his chest, to ensure the safety of his lungs, he was forced to sacrifice a part of his flesh and blood to save his life.

In another apartment, nurse Nguyen Thi Kim Phuong took us to visit wounded soldier Nguyen Van Mao. He lay small on the hospital bed. His swollen legs were covered with cotton and white gauze. On the wall hung the Liberation Soldier Medal, Class 1, and the Glorious Soldier Medal, Class 2. The noble awards of the State for him, for what he had contributed, sacrificed and lost. He participated in the Thua Thien, A Sau, A Luoi campaigns, then the Mau Than campaign and was exposed to Agent Orange, a deadly poison that all of humanity condemned.

For as many years as he was treated here, she accompanied him to take care of him. We were stunned by her gentle gestures, voice, and her amazing beauty. With her, he overcame the pain, not only the physical pain but also the mental pain. He was once pregnant with a faint hope but it did not come to him. For more than forty years he was in bed, that was all the years and more than that, she continued to be his wife by his bedside, taking care of him with every spoonful of rice and sip of porridge. She was doing something that seemed normal, but she was representing the Country to carry out the sacred duty of easing the pain of those who had suffered many losses.

During the annual trip on the occasion of July 27, Associate Professor, Dr. Dang Xuan Khang, Chairman of the Trade Union of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, said: “This year, the Trade Union and Veterans of the school visited and gave gifts and 15 million VND in cash to the Nursing Center for the Meritorious in Phu Tho province and the Nursing Center for the Meritorious in Thuan Thanh, Bac Ninh. The gift is not big but it is a heart of gratitude, wishing the seriously wounded comrades, teachers, staff and workers of the school good health for the wounded and sick soldiers and hoping to ease their pain, overcome difficulties to live and continue to contribute.

Some pictures of the visit: