Insights With the final months of 2012 upon us, the arrival of winter can only mean challenges for our deployed servicemembers abroad as they face environmental extremes only imagined by most of us here at home. Many of those dealing with these operational conditions are members of the nation’s elite Special Operations Forces, or SOF. Tasked with missions unfamiliar to conventional forces, these personnel are responsible for the welfare of their injured colleagues, from administering first aid to full-fledged Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) response to rapid Casualty Evacuation (CASEVAC). Combat & Casualty Care ISSN: 2159-7103 Online ISSN: 2159-7197 is published quarterly by Tactical Defense Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction without permission is strictly forbidden. ©2012 C&CC is free to members of the U.S. military, employees of the U.S. government, first responders, EMS personnel, and non-U.S. foreign service based in the U.S. Mailing Address Tactical Defense Media, Inc. Leisure World Plaza PO Box 12115 Silver Spring, MD 20908-0115 USA Telephone: (301) 974-9792 Fax: (443) 637-3714 www.TacticalDefenseMedia.com
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In this issue of Combat & Casualty Care (C&CC), we spotlight the world of SOF casualty care from field and clinical perspectives, including a look inside operations at Womack Army Medical Center (WAMC), Ft. Bragg, NC. In an exclusive interview, COL Steven Brewster, WAMC Commander, discusses current and forward-looking efforts driving advances in critical force-wide care. For those casualties requiring immediate evacuation to more formal care centers, techniques in tactical evacuation (TACEVAC) are perfected by units such as the U.S. Air Force 76th Emergency Rescue Squadron. The 76th flies under the call sign FEVER, which dates back to MEDEVAC missions flown in Vietnam, and they hold fast to their roots. Their two HC-130P “King” birds are the only fixed wing aircraft dedicated to the MEDEVAC and personnel recovery mission in Afghanistan. More than a decade of wartime operations has taught the nation valuable lessons about blast injuries sustained on the battlefield. Out of these lessons of blast effects on the human body have come better treatments for the effects of burn trauma. Efforts by the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR) Burn Center are shedding light on processes such as damage control, resuscitation and tissue regeneration to help improve patient outcomes. Effective medical training is happening through institutional partnering with the U.S. Army Trauma Training Center (ATTC). Using the combined skills and lessons learned across military and civil sectors, the Ryder Trauma Center and Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, FL, are using technologically advanced simulation labs provided by the University of Miami to better prepare medics to face realities beyond the classroom. As always, feel free to contact me with any questions or comments!
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I wish to thank you for the quality of your publication. The topics are timely and of interest to all in the field and to those of us who have been out of the field for too long. I am considering re-certification in order to go back into tactical support and operations and it is publications like yours, particularly yours, that help keep me abreast of the latest innovations in the field. Dave Becker President, CEO, Romulus Corporation
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2 | Combat & Casualty Care | Q4 2012
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