Lithuania’s emergency medical service to reorganize into five branches from September

Lithuania’s Emergency Medical Service will begin operating under a five-branch structure on September 1, shifting day-to-day coordination to regional offices while concentrating central oversight at its headquarters.

The new branches will be based in Kaunas, Vilnius, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys. Kaunas will gain a branch in place of the regional division that previously operated there.

Branch offices will organize daily operations, including the coordination of ambulance crews and dispatch centers. They will also handle infrastructure and general operational issues. Branch directors will report directly to the service’s director general.

The central service will retain management, supervision and professional competency functions. Two deputy directors general, responsible for medicine and infrastructure, will support those responsibilities.

“We believe this model will help the service operate more efficiently and further ensure the quality of services provided to residents,” Director General Donatas Paliulionis said in a statement. He said the arrangement gives branches a clearer daily role while keeping functions that require common standards and a shared approach at the central service.

The new management structure and staffing list received approval through a director general’s order on April 23, following information and consultation procedures with employee representatives. The service was established on July 1, 2023, by merging 16 emergency medical stations, 30 primary healthcare center units and two private emergency medical institutions. It now has slightly more than 2,800 employees. Emergency medical assistance is available through the 112 emergency number, while medical consultations are provided through 113.

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The branches have been given a clearer role in organizing daily operations, while at the central service we have concentrated those functions that require a common approach, uniform standards and a concentration of competencies. We believe this model will help the service operate more efficiently and further ensure the quality of services provided to residents.