Since 2019, Dr. Anatolii Yaroslavovych Halushchak has been heading the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care for Polytrauma at Mechnykov hospital in Dnipro, one of Ukraine’s most vital medical institutions.
While his role comes with the weight of leadership, you’ll still find him scrubbed in, practicing as a full-time anesthesiologist.
‘Of course! If you lose touch with practice, you lose your qualification’ he says, matter-of-factly. Dr. Halushchak’s own path to medicine started early.
‘I don’t remember what exactly led me to it’, he says, ‘but I do remember that by the fifth grade at school, I already knew I would be a doctor. My parents were a miner and an economist — so this wasn’t a family profession. But I knew’.
Mechnykov hospital: a lifeline for trauma patients
Words like “burnout” or “fatigue” don’t appear in his vocabulary. When he talks about his job, a spark lights up his eyes.
‘In the operating room (OR), teamwork is everything. We operate like one body. Sometimes, a glance is all it takes to know whether to raise or lower the pressure. That’s when things click’.
Founded in 1798, Mechnykov hospital is one of the oldest medical institutions in Ukraine. The legendary surgeon and medical pioneer Mykola Pyrohov is believed to have operated within its walls. He revolutionised battlefield medicine by, formalising triage, developing antiseptic techniques and introducing plaster casts for fractures.
That legacy of innovation and resilience lives on today. Since 2014, Mechnykov hospital has been a lifeline for trauma patients — especially those with polytrauma, or complex, multi-system injuries.
From the early days of war to Russia’s full-scale invasion of 2022, Mechnykov has treated over 41,000 injured patients. Operating theatres rarely rest.
‘We have over 40 active operating rooms. Some surgeons perform more than 50 procedures a month. That’s 5 times more than in peacetime. We’ve transfused nearly 22,000 litres of blood for the wounded during this time. Shifts here don’t end on schedule — they end when the last patient has been operated on. During the early stages of the war, staff stayed at the hospital for days at a time. The general director, Serhii Ryzhenko, remains on-site 24/7 to this day’.
One of the most devastating moments was on October 25, 2024, when a missile exploded just 30 metres from the hospital. Over 500 windows shattered. Operations were underway, and doctors sustained minor injuries from glass shards. Still, they didn’t stop.
‘We moved critical patients to safe areas, cleared out broken glass and debris, and immediately started repairs. Our goal was to restart the operating theatres as soon as possible’,
Halushchak recalls.
Dr. Halushchak’s department specialises in polytrauma — one of the most challenging areas of modern medicine.
’These are injuries to multiple organ systems: the brain and abdomen, the chest and skeleton. Every case is different. Every combination is new’.
His team includes over 70 professionals all trained to handle the unpredictable, among them; anesthesiologists, nurses and orderlies.
‘Most of our team has been here since 2014. Our nurses, for example, are highly versatile. They work in ORs, ICUs, and wards — wherever they’re needed. We’ve added young doctors along the way, but the core stays. It’s a family’.
Every operation is unique. Whether it’s: removing shrapnel from the brain or preserving a mangled limb, save lives, preserve dignity, help patients return to something resembling normalcy, the goal is the same to save lives.
International and EU support, help to equip the hospital and train the staff
’There was a journalist’, Halushchak recalls. ‘Before he came to us, no one gave him a chance to live. But we operated. We brought him back from the edge. And now? He’s on TV again, giving interviews — just like I’m doing now with you’.
International and EU support has been crucial.
‘In our unit, we received an extra-class ventilator. It’s an outstanding machine — top-tier,’ Dr. Halushchak says.
‘They also gave us hospital beds — just amazing. Patients are very satisfied because the beds are fully mobile. They can raise and lower themselves, adjust into any position they need. Absolutely ideal. We got new electrocautery units for the OR, and a Mindray anesthesia station — that one’s a real gem. And that’s just the recent equipment installed in my department’.
And yes, he still finds time to learn.
‘You can never say you know it all in medicine. There’s always more to learn. We received training from the World Health Organization in Kyiv. It was focused on organising evacuations during emergency and mass casualty situations. They gave us a lot of useful information — it was incredibly helpful, and we really appreciated it’.
Working 18-hour shifts, living at the hospital during peak crises, operating during missile attacks — this is the frontline of healthcare in Ukraine.
‘Psychologically, it’s hard’,
Halushchak admits.
‘But we cannot relax. We lead by example. If we stay strong, our team stays strong. This is our battlefield, and we must win’.
