Europe braces for wartime reality: Lithuanian medics train in Ukraine

Lithuania is proactively preparing its healthcare professionals for the realities of war by sending them to Ukraine for intensive practical training. The initiative, organized by the Health Ministry's Centre for Extreme Health Situations (ESSC), aims to equip approximately 120 specialists with crucial experience in managing casualties and operating under duress.

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A total of 30 specialists have traveled to Ukraine for internships from December 2025 to May 2026. The program aims to train a total of 120 individuals who will gain practical knowledge and experience necessary for working in emergency, mass disaster, or war conditions.

Since December 2025, 30 specialists have already participated in these training sessions. The program emphasizes hands-on work alongside Ukrainian medics in real-world conditions, with participants learning to navigate rapidly changing environments, significant uncertainty, and resource limitations. The ESSC highlights that Ukrainian experience demonstrates the need for a healthcare system capable of functioning despite prolonged infrastructure disruption and continuous patient influx.

Key lessons learned underscore the importance of rapid response, long-term system viability under constant pressure, and robust inter-institutional coordination. The training focuses on practical action algorithms, team readiness, and ensuring service continuity in challenging circumstances. Areas of particular focus include mass casualty management, personnel operational models during prolonged crises, logistical resilience, backup communication channels, and the ability of medical facilities to operate independently.

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Internships are organized in small groups, taking into account security requirements, the dynamics of the situation in Ukraine, and the aim of ensuring quality practical preparation and the opportunity for specialists to work directly with Ukrainian medics in real conditions.

The ESSC stresses that the autonomy of healthcare facilities is a critical element of system resilience. Lithuania is increasing its focus on evaluating the preparedness of its medical institutions, including their alternative solutions and continuity plans for emergencies. This preparation is an ongoing process, requiring facilities to assess their capabilities for energy and water supply, communication, patient transfer, staff organization, and the use of secure spaces.

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One of the most important lessons that Lithuanian medics bring back from Ukraine is the necessity of being able to act in rapidly changing conditions of high uncertainty.

Beyond individual training, the ESSC emphasizes strengthening the entire healthcare system's resilience. This involves practical preparedness assessments, stockpiling medical supplies, clear patient flow management, inter-institutional coordination, crisis management training, and regular drills. The ultimate goal, informed by Ukraine's experience, is for the entire health system to function as a cohesive mechanism, making swift decisions, sharing information, allocating resources, and ensuring uninterrupted healthcare services for the population. The ESSC concludes that healthcare system resilience is now a matter of national security, requiring comprehensive preparation.

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The experience in Ukraine shows that during modern military conflicts, the health system must be able to operate under conditions of prolonged infrastructure disruption, continuous patient flow, and limited resources. This also changes the approach to health system preparedness – it is important not only to be able to respond to an individual crisis but to ensure the long-term functioning of the system under constant pressure.