Lithuanian Manpower in Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery

Lithuanian Manpower in Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Prof. Eugenijus Lesinskas Head of the Clinic of Ear, Nose and Throat Diseases Medical Faculty of Vilnius University

Lithuania Ø Area • Total 65, 300 km 2 (25, 200 sq mi) (121 st) Ø Population • 2017 estimate 2, 800, 667[6] (137 th) • Density 43/km 2 (111. 4/sq mi) (173 rd) • Capital and largest city Vilnius • Official languages Lithuanian • Ethnic groups (2015[1]) 86. 7% Lithuanians 5. 6% Poles 4. 8% Russians 1. 3% Belarusians 0. 7% Ukrainians 0. 9% other

• General medical education in Lithuania lasts for 6 years. • Vilnius University Medical Faculty and Lithuanian Health Science University (Kaunas) have about 500 students in studies of medicine program on each study year (in Lithuanian language). • Additionally, 150 -200 foreign students are studying medicine in English program (mainly students from Germany, Northern countries, Italy, Israel etc. )

• During first two years students are studying pre-clinical subjects, which are followed by 3 years of clinical subjects, and 1 year of I clinical internship afterwards.

• Residency in Otorhinolaryngology takes 3 year and consists of studies of ENT- Head and Neck surgery (80 percent of study object) and of Anaestesiology and Emergency, Maxillofacial surgery, Thoracic surgery, Radiology. • There is no fellow-ship on sub-specialities in Otorhinolaryngology. Two Universities are certified to organize residency studies in ENTHNS.

• Finishing ENT residency, residents have to pass national exam, which is 100% theoretical.

• 6 -8 residents complete ENT residency in Lithuania every year. • There are ~300 ENT specialists in Lithuania, ~250 of them are active and full time employed. • Most of the specialists work as outpatient physicians in public or private institutions • about 25 percent of specialists are employed in hospitals as ENT-HNS surgeons.

Academic degree of the ENT specialists: • 4 professors and 5 associate professors in both ENT University Clinics of Lithuania in Vilnius and Kaunas.

• There is no imigration of ENT specialists to Lithuania (few occational cases only). • Up to 10 percent of residents after Otorhinolaryngology residency are emigrating every year (mostly to EU countries).

• Around 80 percent of ENT specialists work in public institutions, 20 percent - in private care. It is common to work in both sectors. • Many of physicians from public services are employed on private institutions on part time job basis as well. • There is a possibility to train residents in private institutions, but this is not very common in ENTHNS residency.