Every year, on the third Sunday of June, Kazakhstan celebrates Medical Workers’ Day. In 2025, this professional holiday falls on June 15. It honors doctors, nurses, paramedics, orderlies, and all those who stand guard over the health and lives of citizens.

This day holds particular significance for those who provide medical aid under high-risk conditions — during combat, emergencies, and counter-terrorism operations. That is why one of the key initiatives of 2025 was the establishment of a Tactical Medicine Service within the structure of the National Guard of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Tactical medicine is a system of emergency care designed for situations where every second counts and where traditional civilian medical approaches are ineffective. As is well known, service members of the National Guard of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan are involved in ensuring public safety, conducting special and counter-terrorism operations, and responding to natural disasters and emergencies. In such environments, the ability to quickly and correctly assist the injured — even before medical teams arrive — is critical.

Tactical medical training in the National Guard is based on the Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) protocol — an international standard for providing care to the wounded in combat. This protocol has been adapted for law enforcement forces and consists of three main stages:

• Care Under Fire — providing aid while under fire (applying tourniquets, ensuring safety);

• Tactical Field Care — field care (controlling bleeding, ensuring airway and breathing, stabilizing the condition);

• Tactical Evacuation Care — evacuation care (providing medical support during transport to a treatment facility).

Training is conducted in specialized centers and includes both theoretical lessons and hands-on practice using modern simulators that replicate battlefield injuries and real-life scenarios.

Tactical medical training is not a one-off initiative, but part of a long-term strategy to modernize Kazakhstan’s law enforcement forces. This strategy aims to improve combat readiness, reduce personnel losses, and foster a culture of medical competence within the military environment.

In addition, every service member of the patrol units in the National Guard receives basic first aid training. This is essential to ensure that soldiers can respond effectively to injuries sustained by fellow troops or civilians during emergencies — even before professional medical teams arrive.

Tactical medical instructors regularly conduct drills and field exercises under conditions that closely resemble real-life operations. This training helps build psychological resilience and enables military personnel to react quickly and effectively to life-threatening situations — whether involving their own safety or that of others.

On Medical Workers’ Day, it is important to remember: saving lives is not only the duty of doctors in hospitals. It is also the daily mission of military medics, instructors, and field paramedics who work under dangerous conditions.

It must be said that the National Guard of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan is taking a significant step forward by implementing modern tactical medicine standards focused on preserving life — both on peaceful city streets and in high-risk operational zones.

Press Service of the National Guard Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/kvv/press/news/details/1017588?lang=kk