Adaptation EMT2 Toscana

The Adaptation EMT2 Toscana project took place from 2022 to 2024 and was coordinated by the Civil Protection Department, in collaboration with the Region of Tuscany and the volunteer organization GCU-Gruppo Chirurgia d’Urgenza per interventi di protezione civile Pisa, to bring the Advanced Medical Post up to the international standards of the World Health Organization and achieve Emergency Medical Team Type 2 (EMT2) classification.

The project was co-financed by the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO). The EU funding enabled the implementation of diagnostics and health services, as well as improvements in personnel training, with the aim of strengthening the operational response to disasters and humanitarian operations.

The Region of Tuscany, in particular, was tasked with coordinating activities at the local level, ensuring the recruitment of healthcare personnel, and organizing and managing training activities in collaboration with the Department and the GCU. Through collaboration with the Regional Health System, which played a key role in the project, a list of approximately 300 individuals—including doctors, nurses, and logistics specialists—was compiled; these individuals were selected and trained to meet the staffing and specialty requirements for working in an EMT2.

Upon completion of the adaptation work, the field hospital—already part of the Tuscany Region’s Civil Protection Mobile Unit—was equipped with numerous medical modules, including: an outpatient clinic, an operating room with a 20-bed inpatient capacity, a maternal and child health area, and spaces dedicated to radiology, orthopedics, and rehabilitation. An eco-friendly waste management system was also implemented, along with the construction of a new warehouse for storing humanitarian aid and equipment.

Part of the funding was also allocated to strengthening the facility’s technological infrastructure and the resources deployed to ensure safe operations even in environments at risk of airborne infectious diseases. Drawing on the experience gained during the COVID-19 pandemic, the field hospital will be able to deploy dedicated treatment pathways and an isolation area capable of treating patients who test positive without compromising operations in other areas.

The funding provided by the European Commission also included a training and continuing education program for relevant personnel, designed to provide in-depth coverage of topics such as the management of large-scale emergencies, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the regulatory framework for civil protection, triage in large-scale emergencies, the composition of the health module, and emergency and radio communications.

Over the course of the two-year period, two field exercises were also organized in Tuscany to test the overall system and verify activation procedures, setup, staff operations, and the management of medical care and reporting.

In October 2024, upon completion of its activities, the Advance Medical Post achieved Type 2 Emergency Medical Team (EMT2) classification and was registered in the European Civil Protection Pool (ECCP), a pool of pre-committed resources made available by the Mechanism’s member states to respond to major emergencies both within and outside the European Union.

If activated, the EMT2 Toscana must ensure a prompt deployment, full operational capability in the areas affected by the emergency within 96 hours, and 24/7 operational capacity for approximately two weeks within the European Union and at least three weeks in areas outside the Union.