Poland reopens Military Medical Academy in Łódź with 31 paramedic students

Academic resumption in Łódź

The Military Medical Academy in Łódź inaugurated its 2026/2027 academic year on Friday, 2 October 2026, resuming educational activity after a 25-year hiatus. The official matriculation ceremony included the formal distribution of student record books to an initial group of 31 students. All 31 candidates admitted to the inaugural cohort were selected directly from active soldiers in the Polish military. The institution was formally re-established on 1 July 2026 to address specialized medical training requirements for the country's armed forces and rebuild military medical education from the ground up.

Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk attended the opening ceremony in Łódź, noting that establishing the institution was one of the first official tasks assigned to him by the minister of national defense. Tomczyk explained during his address that the reactivated academy is designed to meet contemporary operational demands rather than simply reconstruct a past institution, emphasizing soldier survivability on the battlefield.

WAM returns to the map of Łódź and Poland. We are not recreating something historical, but creating a new academy, which in new realities is to meet the conditions of the modern battlefield. Because battlefield medicine is a key element of state defense. We focus on tanks, on airplanes, but behind this equipment stands a human being and the soldier's survivability on the battlefield is of key importance for defense.

Battlefield medicine and NATO integration

The academy's rector, Professor Colonel Marek Saracyn, addressed the shifts in clinical and military practices that have occurred since the academy last admitted students a quarter of a century ago. Saracyn explained that tactical battlefield medicine has evolved substantially and placed early paramedic intervention at the center of modern combat trauma care. He noted that first responders play a decisive role during the opening minutes after a soldier is wounded.

A quarter of a century in medicine is a completely different era. Medicine has changed, and battlefield medicine in particular. A paramedic is the foundation of modern medicine. He is by the wounded in the first minutes.

Saracyn further outlined the strategic objectives for the academy as a training center for the Polish Armed Forces. He described the institution as a base for building specialized military personnel while maintaining defense cooperation with NATO allies.

I see WAM as a dynamic university, built as a forge of staff for the military and a solid partner for our NATO allies.

Paramedic curriculum and medical program expansion

The curriculum begins with first-cycle undergraduate studies in emergency medical rescue, representing the first operational study track at the reactivated academy. Over the course of the three-year degree program, military students will receive theoretical instruction alongside practical training in emergency rescue procedures. The coursework is designed to equip soldiers with skills to execute emergency medical activities for individuals in life-threatening and health-threatening situations. Upon graduation, these military paramedics will enter the medical security system of the Polish Armed Forces to support military units.

The paramedicine program forms the opening phase of the academy's broader institutional roadmap. Following the rollout of emergency medical training, the academy plans to launch admissions for a full medical doctor degree program in 2027. Under this future medical track, the institution aims to admit approximately 250 candidates per year to supply qualified military physicians to the military health service.