Contestant of the regional competition "Young Person of the Year – 2025" in the "On Guard for Life" category Yevhenii Yatsura
My name is Yatsura Yevhenii, born in 1993. Since my teenage years, I dreamed of becoming a doctor to help people in my hometown. In 2010, I graduated from school № 26 in Kramatorsk and entered Bakhmut Medical College. I then continued my studies at Luhansk State Medical University. Due to the hostilities in 2014, I was forced to transfer to Dnipropetrovsk Medical Academy, but this did not change my desire to return.
In 2017, after obtaining my medical qualification, I fulfilled my dream. I returned to Kramatorsk and began my residency at Donetsk National Medical University, specializing in "General Practice – Family Medicine." Since 2019, I have been working as a family doctor, and since 2023, I have been the head of a polyclinic, which allows me not only to treat but also to improve the organization of work. In 2023, I also earned a second degree—a master's in "Public Management and Administration"—as I strive to combine clinical practice with effective management.
From 2018 to 2019, I was a freelance medical expert for the National Health Service of Ukraine. Since 2019, I have been a freelance assistant professor at the Department of Internal Medicine №1 of Donetsk National Medical University. From 2019 to 2022, I worked under a contract with the Ukrainian Red Cross Society, and in 2020, with the "Medicos del Mundo" Association. We traveled to buffer zones to provide not only medical care to people but also to conduct training for doctors working there. From May 2022 to December 2023, I was the project manager for "Social initiatives for occupational safety and health" to coordinate tuberculosis diagnosis and detection in Kramatorsk. Since July 2023, I have been working as a curator and doctor for the Project HOPE mobile medical team.
With the start of the full-scale invasion, when many of my colleagues left the city, I decided to stay. I worked in an intensified mode, seeing patients. With the help of the hospital administration, we organized the work of the polyclinic, creating a stock of medicines and developing an action plan for emergencies. Since 2023, my team and I have been traveling to the de-occupied territories of the Lyman and Sviatohirsk communities and to the most remote areas of the Kramatorsk community to provide medical assistance to local residents. In total, we have made over 500 such trips.
I constantly improve my skills by undergoing numerous internships, training, and conferences. Since 2018, I have been a regional trainer for implementing the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC). As a doctor, I use an ultrasound machine during appointments, which allows me to perform primary diagnostics directly in the office and not refer patients for additional examinations. Also, since 2022, I have been a trainer for the WHO global program mhGAP, which helps specialists provide assistance for mental disorders.
In conditions of personnel shortages, we successfully launched the "Nurse with Expanded Powers" project. Nurses received additional training and were given the right to independently perform certain medical manipulations and provide consultations to patients, which allowed us to optimize the workflow and reduce the load on doctors.
I apply a fair leadership style that helps build a motivated team. I introduced regular meetings to discuss problematic issues and share experiences, and also organized a mentorship system for young specialists, which contributes to their rapid adaptation and professional growth. In February 2023, I organized the work of a multidisciplinary team that worked in a mobile clinic in the city of Novo-Ukrainka, Kirovohrad region. We provided medical and psychological assistance to internally displaced persons from Kramatorsk and throughout the Donetsk region. I am a member of the inter-agency working group on the general health status of the Kramatorsk community population. We implemented a project to identify and educate people at risk of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Within this project, 32 events were held, in which 447 people took part.
I also participated in the creation of the art object "Berehynia" together with the head of the Donetsk region, Vadym Filashkin, and the youth of the region.
In 2025, I received a diploma for winning the regional selection in the nomination "Best Doctor – Standard of the Profession." Also in 2025, I was awarded the distinction for professionalism and mercy "Order of St. Panteleimon" (Praise).
For me, being a doctor is not just a profession, but a conscious choice I made in my youth. After returning to my native Kramatorsk after my studies, I felt that my dream had come true. When the full-scale invasion began, I did not hesitate. This city, these people—my family, my neighbors, my patients. Staying and continuing to work was a matter of honor and responsibility for me. I realize that my work goes beyond the office. In the conditions of war, medicine is not only about treatment but also about organization, strategy, and continuous learning. Every project, every trip to frontline communities, every training for colleagues—this is my contribution to ensuring that our community not only survives but becomes stronger. My work on guard for life is my way of fighting for victory and for the future of my hometown.