Georgia is a small country located in a strategic part of the Caucasus region of Eastern Europe. The country’s favorable attitude toward the West and their goal of NATO membership has led to the worsening of relations with Russia, culminating in Russia’s invasion and occupation of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2008. These unresolved conflicts, supported by Russia, have created an atmosphere of “stable instability” which have displaced thousands of people across the country and created vulnerable populations.

The US Embassy in Tbilisi is working to strengthen their relationship with a community in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region by improving access to cancer screenings and medical treatment for the local population. Meeting the basic needs of men, women, and children in this potentially vulnerable area of Georgia demonstrates the United States’ commitment not only to the stability of the region, but to the health and wellbeing of its citizens.

A new mammography machine is sitting in the clinic, still wrapped in plastic. Renovations are required before it can be put into use.

A civil affairs team working in Georgia reached out to Spirit of America after learning about a clinic that was in need of assistance. The team explained that the clinic was the only one of its kind in the region capable of providing cancer screenings and health services to women who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford them. They went on to explain that the clinic had recently received a donation of equipment, including a new mammography machine to replace a broken one, but that renovations were necessary before the equipment could be put into use.

Completing the renovations in a timely manner will strengthen the ties between the US and the community—and with the country overall—by allowing the clinic to continue providing critical medical services.