Lithuania’s Health Ministry has designated 23 hospitals across the country to be prepared to operate in extreme situations and potential wartime conditions, Health Minister Marija Jakubauskienė has announced.
"We have already drawn up a list of 23 medical institutions covering in throughout Lithuania, assessed the investment needs, and are working on how to help them prepare in a systematic and comprehensive manner, coordinating efforts from the ministry," the minister told lawmakers last week.
She added that efforts were under way to secure joint funding for the programme, which forms part of the ministry’s priority to strengthen the health system against civil, hybrid and military threats.
The initiative includes reinforcing hospital infrastructure, improving the readiness of medical professionals to operate in critical situations, and ensuring that services can be synchronised to follow NATO operating procedures.
As reported earlier by BNS, the Health Ministry, working with the NGO Blue/Yellow, has organised internships for Lithuanian medical staff in Ukraine to gain direct experience of wartime healthcare. Around 40 professionals from across the country have already taken part.
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