Can the Medical Realities Unfolding in Today’s Conflict and Disaster Zones Sharpen our Response When the Next Mass‑Casualty Event Strikes?
On February 23–24, 2026, Perry World House, together with Wyss Medical Foundation, hosted a conference to discuss this question and draw on lessons learned from those providing trauma care on the Ukrainian battlefront. It underscored Penn’s commitment to advancing global health, improving trauma systems, and partnering with international colleagues to strengthen medical readiness. The conference also marked the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Titled Medical Boots on the Ground: How Can Embedded Medical Teams in War and Disaster Zones Strengthen Military Medical Preparedness?, the conference convened members of the armed services, trauma care specialists, lawyers, academics, and government officials. Together, they examined the challenges and opportunities of embedding U.S. medical observation and support teams into active zones of conflict and disaster, and discussed how to evolve policy, practice, and systems to improve battlefront care and preparedness for mass casualty events.
The conference opened with an analysis of historical and present-day healthcare challenges, including World War I, the Russo-Japanese War, and the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Experiences from these conflicts point to a formula for improved healthcare outcomes: financial and media support, proximity to affected areas, and a clear understanding of the battlefield. The changing nature of warfare—for instance, the use of drones—has widened the “kill zone” where combatants and civilians are at immediate risk of harm. Contested evacuation routes and well-documented targeting of medical teams has impeded the ability of healthcare professionals to care for casualties within the critical “golden hour” after injury when timely care greatly improves survival. This collapse of norms protecting hospitals and medical staff in conflict zones, particularly Russia’s conduct in Ukraine, prompted significant discussion and reflection on the future of warfare and medical care in the battlespace.
Participants also discussed how ongoing conflicts and natural disasters could be leveraged as theaters for learning and exchange of best practice. Such engagements provide a window to understanding the rapid evolution of conflict and disaster response in real-time. Further, they could mitigate the recurring atrophy of medical skills and system capacity between wars and other large-scale events in ways that serve U.S. national security interests abroad and strengthen disaster response at home.
In answering the question, “Will we ever be ready enough?” participants called for, inter alia, increased funding and support for training, including more civilian–military joint exercises and cooperation; expanded opportunities for Ukrainian physicians and trauma teams to train in the United States; and enhanced mental health support to improve readiness and retention among those working in these high-stress environments.
Michael C. Horowitz, faculty director of Perry World House, said, “Perry World House hosted this conference on the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to highlight the extraordinary work Penn is doing to support medical care in Ukraine and the lessons we are learning from our counterparts on the ground. We are grateful for the opportunity to convene this important discussion.”
This workshop was cosponsored by Wyss Medical Foundation and made possible, in part, by Carnegie Corporation of New York.
