The Armed Forces of Ukraine are introducing a system of enhanced control over the work of military medical commissions (MMC) at territorial recruitment centers. This was stated by Major Dmytro Lykhoviy, a representative of the Main Communications Directorate of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, reporting that the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Mykhailo Drapaty, signed a corresponding order. According to Lykhoviy, the new measures are designed to improve the quality of medical examinations and make it impossible to mobilize citizens who, for health reasons, cannot perform military service.
Monitoring commission decisions and combating corruption
A key element of the reform is rigorous monitoring of the validity of all MMC decisions. Special attention, as Lykhoviy emphasized, will be paid to situations where a person was initially found fit for service and subsequently declared unfit due to diseases unrelated to military service. In such cases, medical institutions and specific specialists who issued the conclusion will be held accountable for fictitious or negligent findings. In addition to preventing corruption, the order aims to systematically eliminate cases where conscripts' health is assessed formally.
Chronic diseases and specialist training
A separate emphasis in the new requirements is placed on thorough examinations of people with chronic illnesses that may worsen in the very first months of service. Furthermore, special training courses on modern diagnostic standards during medical examinations will be regularly organized for chairmen and members of MMCs. Thus, the leadership of the Armed Forces intends not only to tighten control but also to improve the qualifications of those who directly decide on the fitness of citizens.
Supervision of TCR document flow
In addition to the commissions themselves, supervision is being stepped up over how officials of territorial recruitment centers direct citizens to medical examinations, process documents, and enter information into the Unified State Register of Conscripts, Persons Liable for Military Service, and Reservists. Lykhoviy emphasized that these decisions correspond to the Commander-in-Chief's September principles on fair assessment of the real state of affairs and readiness to correct mistakes. 'In accordance with these principles, people are the main value of the Ukrainian army, and their life and health must be a priority at all stages of military service,' stated the representative of the Main Communications Directorate.
Context: Death of a mobilized doctor in Dnipro
The new measures come against the backdrop of a high-profile incident that occurred on October 16 in Dnipro. Ihor Reveka, a mobilized ambulance doctor and pediatrician from the Kharkiv region, died in a hospital. He had been hospitalized with health complaints during basic military training. The cause of death was a malignant neoplasm of the sigmoid colon. This case once again raised the question of the quality of preliminary medical examinations before sending citizens for service.
