From Monday to Friday, Dominykas Jankevičius’s daily routine involves project management, procurement and supply processes, risk assessment, team organization, and decisions for which he must take responsibility. For more than 15 years, he has led teams and also developed his own business, combining public health knowledge, project management experience, and work with business entities.
However, in the evenings and on weekends, D. Jankevičius’s daily routine changes.
One date that changed the perspective
February 24, 2022, changed many people’s views on security. One member of the Vilnius 1040 medical riflemen’s unit was no exception. That morning, when Russia’s war against Ukraine began, D. Jankevičius had a very simple but uncomfortable question: what would he do if a similar situation happened in Lithuania?
Preparation does not completely eliminate fear, but it helps to control it.
“What do I really know, how could I be useful, how could I protect my family and contribute to ensuring that a foreign soldier’s foot does not set on our land?” – recalls the rifleman.
He had thought about joining the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union before, but there were always reasons to postpone the decision. The war in Ukraine prompted him to act.
After completing the basic rifleman course, he already knew he wanted not only to be a rifleman but also to acquire specific practical skills that could be useful in a real situation. He chose the medical unit because medicine and health were close to him and due to his education.
“It seemed natural to supplement my knowledge with practical skills that could help save a human life in a real situation,” says D. Jankevičius.
First exercises – anxiety and an unexpected lesson
The first time he came to the medical riflemen’s unit exercises, he did not really know what to expect.
“It’s hard to say if it was as I imagined when I actually didn’t even know what to imagine,” the rifleman recalls with a smile.
Still, the first exercises remain memorable to this day. They took place in Vilnius and were dedicated to resistance actions. The riflemen had to dress in civilian clothes and carry out various practical tasks: set up a headquarters and a medical aid point, transfer medical supplies, evacuate the wounded, gather additional information – all while making sure the supposed enemy would not recognize them.
“I clearly remember how much anxiety and uncertainty there was then. It seemed that trying to act as naturally as possible, I was actually acting unnaturally. Stress did its part, so mistakes were inevitable. I performed one task in such a way that I passed some information to a person who, as it later turned out, was a representative of the ‘enemy’ forces. The enemy proved to be cunning, well-prepared, and, unlike me at that time, knew exactly what he was doing,” shares the member of the medical riflemen’s unit.
The first exercises clearly showed how much more there was to learn. Theoretical knowledge is not enough – one must be able to apply it in very difficult, uncertain, and constantly changing conditions. Today, his training list includes weapon handling, first aid on the battlefield, communications, tactics, operations planning, medicines, and many other things.
“I am a specialist in the medical evacuation squad myself, so when the active part of the exercises begins, what we call muscle memory quickly kicks in. What we learn on weekday evenings and weekends must be applied practically: in the dark cabin of a minibus, amid noise, driving on a rough road, with a lot of tension around, and the supposed ‘patient’ may scream, lose consciousness, or suddenly deteriorate.
My task at such a moment is quite simple in words: to assess the wounded person’s condition, provide necessary aid, stabilize them, and safely hand them over to the next medical aid level. In practice, this means I must be able to apply all previously learned knowledge quickly, accurately, and under stress,” says D. Jankevičius.
Therefore, the riflemen train by deliberately creating uncomfortable conditions: they play loud music, work in the dark, use flashing lights, and people around shout and disturb.
“The goal is very simple – so that during stress you don’t have to think about where to start but can focus on the person who needs your help at that moment,” shares the member of the medical riflemen’s unit.
The team matters more than the profession
Today, the Vilnius 1040 medical riflemen’s unit has more than 115 medical riflemen. They are very diverse in professions, experience, and life stories. The unit includes military medics, doctors, paramedics, pharmacists, dentists, as well as architects, lawyers, IT specialists, psychologists, economists, entrepreneurs, scientists, students, and representatives of other professions.
Some of them are women, some men. However, during exercises, everyone can find themselves in the same conditions: sleeping on a mat or a military bed, standing watch at night by communications, carrying a heavy patient on a stretcher, sharing water, and supporting each other when it’s tough.
“I think the most important thing here is not the profession or gender but motivation, willingness to learn, and the ability to be part of a team. After each exercise, we analyze what went well, where knowledge, preparation, or mutual communication was lacking,” says D. Jankevičius.
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Preparation requires more than just knowledge
However, knowledge and motivation alone are not enough. Medical evacuation tasks require appropriate equipment. That is why a significant support for the unit came from the non-repayable capital fund “Good Deeds Workshop,” which provided 30,000 euros in funding.
With these funds, it is planned to purchase and adapt two specialized vehicles for evacuating and transporting the wounded.
Until now, they usually had to rent minibuses for exercises. Before each session, they had to adapt them anew for medical evacuation tasks: cover the windows, install stretcher or bed mounts, prepare places for medical bags and other equipment. This took a lot of time, and each time they had to start almost from scratch.
“Having our own vehicles specially prepared for wounded evacuation tasks will change the situation. We will be much more operational, spend more time on the exercises themselves, and set up the transport according to our needs and high medical evacuation standards,” says the rifleman.
Finding suitable vehicles is quite difficult. There are not many vehicles on the market that meet all the unit’s criteria. However, the first result has already been achieved – one vehicle has already arrived in Lithuania. It is currently being gradually adapted for medical evacuation needs and should soon participate in the first exercises.
When you know what you can do, how to act, and how to help others, there is more calmness and confidence in your actions.
“Such support means not only a new vehicle for us. It gives us the opportunity to prepare even better for situations that no one would want to face,” says D. Jankevičius.
Exercises prepare for multiple scenarios
Medical riflemen’s exercises recreate very different situations. These can be mass disasters where there are more wounded than medical resources available at the time, evacuation of the wounded from the battlefield, or long-term transport of a single casualty under difficult conditions.
They have to train moving through forests, ditches, water obstacles, or other difficult terrain, and extracting the wounded from hard-to-reach places.
It becomes especially difficult when there is more than one casualty. In such situations, one must be able to determine which wounded person needs help the most at that moment. This is not an easy decision, but it is necessary in the case of a mass disaster.
“Help is first given not to the one who shouts the loudest or looks the most injured, but to the one for whom medical intervention at that moment can have the greatest impact on survival,” says D. Jankevičius.
After each exercise, the riflemen analyze what went well and where knowledge, preparation, or better mutual communication was still needed. Because, according to the rifleman, repetition is necessary. Even well-learned practical skills weaken gradually if not used regularly, and so-called muscle memory fades.
When asked what he fears most thinking about a real situation, he answers simply: “The safety of my family.” And he hopes that everything he learned in exercises will not have to be used in reality.
For someone considering joining the medical riflemen’s unit but doubting if they are ready, he has a simple piece of advice like in the movie “Top Gun”: “Don’t think, just do.”
“Don’t wait for the perfect moment. Come, try, and you will see that there are people around who will help you learn everything step by step. Preparation does not completely eliminate fear, but it helps to control it. When you know what you can do, how to act, and how to help others, there is more calmness and confidence in your actions,” says D. Jankevičius.
The Vilnius 1040 medical riflemen’s unit project was among four projects that the “Good Deeds Workshop” fund allocated part of a total of 106,000 euros in support to non-governmental organizations during the first call. The “Good Deeds Workshop” support areas include projects for newborn and child health, talent development, civic engagement, and cultural preservation. Projects that foster Lithuania’s potential for progress are also funded.
The “Good Deeds Workshop” fund is best known in society for the “Ankstukai” project and has already allocated more than 1.5 million euros in support to various projects over its years of activity.
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