The event kicked off recently at BSUIR on the eve of International Volunteer Day, which is celebrated on December 5. The project is planned to be held across the country. As part of the useful marathon, students will learn first aid skills to save a person's life before the arrival of doctors, when every minute counts.

Chairman of the Standing Committee of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus on Healthcare, Physical Culture, Family and Youth Policy Valery Malashko explained: "We will implement it consistently. We started with Minsk, then other universities will join BSUIR, after that we will move on to regional centers. Our future plan is to cooperate with the Ministry of Health in order to actively involve medical workers in the project. It is important to reach every institution of learning, because students and pupils should have automatic first aid skills."

He also noted: "As for the volunteer movement, it is well developed in Belarus. Young, middle age, elderly people selflessly devote themselves in their free time from their main job to care for people in need. We have noticed that the laws that are in force in certain fields are not enough. We in parliament are seriously studying the issue of the release of a legislative initiative next year to create a law on volunteering. In the near future, we will be able to study the practice of applying similar legislative acts in Russia. Therefore, this will be a legislative consolidation of the idea of volunteering, so that the volunteer is armed not only with humanism, but also protected."

Young people will be taught practical skills in providing first aid, and most importantly - to be caring, during the school year. Everything will be practiced on special dummies. For example, the project participants will have master classes in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, stopping bleeding, and sudden allergic reactions. Experienced doctors and Red Cross volunteers will be teaching. By May, it will be possible to sum up the results and outline plans for disseminating this experience in those educational institutions where such classes have not yet been held.