A Dutch medical trainee becomes the first foreign intern to serve at Kharkiv’s military hospital.

An overseas intern in a Ukrainian hospital

According to Рубрика — Суспільство: Frederik Rokins, a 26-year-old medical student from the Netherlands, has made history as the first foreign trainee to complete an internship at Kharkiv’s military hospital. She came to learn directly from Ukrainian doctors how to treat combat injuries. Her days are spent observing medical teams performing complex operations on wounded soldiers, even while air-raid sirens are sounding. One casualty with multiple severe wounds may have several surgeons working on him simultaneously.

Rokins says she was especially struck by the endurance of Ukraine’s medical personnel. She had never before encountered battlefield injuries of this kind or on this scale. This is her third visit to Ukraine in a year; her earlier trips were for volunteer work, when she brought ambulances from Amsterdam to Kharkiv. One of the main hospitals taking in wounded from the hottest front-line areas, including Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, the facility carries out about 50 complex surgical procedures every day, according to journalists.

Cross-border medical cooperation

This internship underscores how important international medical teamwork has become during wartime. In response to the needs of healthcare facilities, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry plans to draw on international assistance to develop military hospitals. In turn, trainees like Rokins can help strengthen local clinicians’ skills and encourage the exchange of expertise between countries, reflecting a broader effort to link battlefield medicine with global knowledge.