Skip to main content

Military Health System

Test of Sitewide Banner

This is a test of the sitewide banner capability. In the case of an emergency, site visitors would be able to visit the news page for addition information.

Nurse-led research aims to improve battlefield medicine

Image of Military nurses working on a simulated patient in a helicopter. U.S. Army Maj. Jacob MacGregor (right) certified nurse anesthetist for the 541st Forward Surgical Team (Airborne), prepares an IV bag while Staff Sgt. Jolene Davis (kneeling left) flight medic for C Company, "Northstar Dustoff," 2-211th Aviation Regiment (Air Ambulance), performs a casualty assessment on a simulated casualty, U.S. Navy Operations Specialist 2nd Class Niretzy Hill, PRT tactical operations center watch-stander, while in flight on a UH-60 Black Hawk medevac helicopter during medical evacuation training on FOB Farah, Jan. 9. (Photo by Navy Chief Hospital Corpman Josh Ives.)

As the Department of Defense prepares for future military operations in the multi-domain environment, the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR) is working to develop solutions for the challenges of prolonged field care, particularly burn casualties, which are expected to be a major concern on the future battlefield.

“The U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR) is made up primarily of research and clinical arms. Together, one of their goals is to create novel solutions to optimize survival and functional recovery of burn casualties. This is achieved through expert analysis, multidisciplinary care, and translational research,” said Army nurse scientist Lt. Col. Christopher VanFosson, Ph.D., MHA, RN, NEA-BC, AN.

In detailing the mission and vision of the USAISR during the November Medical Museum Science Café, held virtually by the National Museum of Health and Medicine in Silver Spring, Maryland, VanFosson discussed how nurse-led research studies seek to improve military readiness in combat medicine. The museum is a division of the Defense Health Agency Research and Development Directorate.

To prepare for future conflicts within the multi-domain battlefield (air, land, maritime, space, and cyberspace), VanFosson and his team study ways to improve outcomes for a variety of operations, including continuing communications, injuries from new weapons systems, medical evacuation and prolonged care on the battlefield.

“One way the USAISR is trying to provide solutions for the multi-domain environment is through the U.S. Army Burn Center’s pre-deployment training. Burn care and the long-term sequela of burn injury are major concerns for the future battlefield,” said VanFosson.

According to VanFosson, due to the expected increase in burn-related injuries caused by new weaponry, burn management may become a large part of the care provided by combat medics in the future. Using the burn patient as a universal trauma model, the United States Army Institute of Surgical Research Burn Center is an ideal training platform for medics to gain pre-combat trauma exposure and experience for the multi-domain battlefield.

In his presentation, VanFosson listed a variety of studies and papers that helped to inform clinical readiness and training based on outcomes seen in the Burn Center and in Afghanistan. For example, one paper in 2012 (Registered Nurses as Permanent Members of Medical Evacuation Crews: The Critical Link) argued for the use of registered nurses as permanent members of medical evacuation crews instead of retraining Army flight medics.

“Lieutenant Colonel Wissemann and I argued that transitioning Army flight medics to paramedics would not achieve the Army’s patient care goals because the active duty flight paramedics would not be able to achieve the exposure and practice that their reserve component counterparts could. However, Army nurses that function in ERs and ICUs on a daily basis had the requisite knowledge, skills, and ability to achieve [this],” said VanFosson.

The results of these studies directly impacted clinical readiness (a term expounded upon during the presentation) efforts in a variety of ways. They have informed Joint Trauma System clinical practice guidelines, highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of clinical readiness training, provided medical planners with better understanding of Role 2 (limited access to hospital facilities) surgical unit capabilities, supported the need for critical care nurses on medical evacuation flights, and finally, pushed for the continued use of the TIP-TOP/Clinical Transition Framework across the Defense Health Agency for clinical competency and consistency.

“We appreciate Lieutenant Colonel VanFosson’s contribution to our science café program,” said Andrea Schierkolk, the museum’s Public Programs Manager. “NMHM is honored to share accounts of triumphs and challenges in military medicine and we look forward to learning more about what’s happening in military medicine when the series resumes in January 2021.”

You also may be interested in...

Whole Genome Sequencing at Tripler Army Medical Center

Article
12/29/2022
Dr. Keith Fong reviews data with other lab technicians

The third installment in a 6-part series highlighting the efforts of the Military Health System laboratories and the technicians who worked to identify COVID-19 variants using special sequencing technology.

Walter Reed Army Institute of Research Implements SARS-CoV-2 Genome Sequencing

Article
12/23/2022
Military medical personnel in laboratory

This is the second article in a 6-part series that highlights the work of technicians and scientists in Military Health System laboratories who worked to identify COVID-19 variants using special sequencing technology.

Military Labs Use Whole Genome Sequencing of COVID-19 Variants

Article
12/16/2022
Lab technician at work

The first in a 6-part series highlighting the work of technicians and scientists working in support of the MHS who identified COVID-19 variants using special sequencing technology.

Blast Overpressure Research Brings NATO Group to DHHQ

Article
12/13/2022
Military personnel fire mortar rounds

DOD and NATO experts recently met to continue their work on warfighter brain health to protect soldiers from the overblast pressure of their weaponry.

How the U.S. Military Acclimates Units to High-Altitude Operations

Article
11/28/2022
Service members on a mountain

The Military Health System takes measures to prevent and mitigate altitude sickness in service members operating at high altitudes. For best results, it’s key to acclimate units gradually and progressively.

Military Health Symposium Research Shapes Future of Warfighter Health

Article
10/5/2022
U.S. Army Col Jennifer Stowe presents her research from behind a podium at the MHSRS meeting 2022.

Scientific session at the Military Health System Research Symposium highlights research addressing critical military medical issues.

Research Symposium Recognizes 2022 Award Winners

Article
9/15/2022
Dr. Sumil Shah accepts the Outstanding Program Management (Team) Award, along with some members of his team from Ms. Seileen Mullen, the acting secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. MHSRS provides a collaborative setting for the exchange of information between military providers with deployment experience, research and academic scientists, international partners, and industry on research and related health care initiatives, such as Combat Casualty Care, Operational Medicine, Clinical and Rehabilitative Medicine, Medical Simulation and Information Sciences, and infectious Diseases.

The 2022 Military Health System Research Symposium highlighted and honored innovative researchers dedicated to help the warfighter on and off the battlefield.

Cutting-Edge Science Featured at Military Health System Research Symposium

Article
9/15/2022
Ms. Seileen Mullen, the acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, makes opening remarks during the Military Health System Research Symposium at the Gaylord Hotel in Kissimmee, FL on Monday, September 12, 2022. MHSRS provides a collaborative setting for the exchange of information between military providers with deployment experience, research and academic scientists, international partners, and industry on research and related health care initiatives, such as Combat Casualty Care, Operational Medicine, Clinical and Rehabilitative Medicine, Medical Simulation and Information Sciences, and infectious Diseases.

The 2022 Military Health System Research Symposium, held in Kissimmee, Fla., opened this week after a two-year pandemic hiatus. The audience was enthusiastic as MHS leaders shared their opening remarks.

Bulgarian Armed Forces Demonstrate Combat Medical Advancements

Article
8/22/2022
Two medics tend to a dummy in a simulated emergency.

Bulgarian Armed Forces showed off their combat lifesaving training to a U.S. delegation Aug. 10.

DHA Program Supports Training Education of Future Medical Providers

Article
7/20/2022
Military personnel looking at display

The Clinical Investigations Program combines research and training to teach and develop the future clinicians of the Military Health System.

The Need for Speed Requires Intense Training

Article
7/18/2022
 Military personnel conducts routine ops in US 3rd Fleet

Tom Cruise has nothing on real military pilots and their training.

Army Experts: Rabies Risk is Not Worth It

Article
7/5/2022
Army Experts: Rabies Risk is Not Worth It

Almost 60,000 people around the world die from rabies each year. Despite the common belief that rabid animals are easily identified by foaming at the mouth and aggressive behavior, infected animals may not look sick or act strangely.

Final Days in Afghanistan: Lab Techs Stepped Up to Support Withdrawal

Article
6/30/2022
Final Days in Afghanistan Lab Techs Stepped Up to Support Withdrawal

“Prior to the attack, teams were preparing to leave the area. Suddenly, everything changed, and our main goal shifted from COVID-19 support to blood supply and triage.”

How Drones Will Transform Battlefield Medicine – and Save Lives

Article
6/23/2022
Drones carrying fresh blood products to wounded troops on the front lines may be critical for military medicine in a conflict against a "near-peer" adversary.

Emerging technology may use drones to deliver blood products for wounded troops on the front lines of combat. That capability may be critical in a "near-peer" conflict.

How MHS GENESIS will become essential to patients' health journey

Article
6/21/2022
Dr. Robert Marshall, program director of the Department of Defense Clinical Informatics Fellowship at Madigan Army Medical Center.

Ensuring proper training of both providers and patients is essential for the successful integration and sustainment of MHS GENESIS into MHS care.

Page 2 of 9 , showing items 16 - 30
First < 1 2 3 4 5  ... > Last 
Refine your search
Last Updated: May 01, 2023
Follow us on Instagram Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Follow us on YouTube Sign up on GovDelivery