Military health leaders cite innovations in care from decade of war

Photo By J Snyderman | Vice Adm. William E. Gortney, director of Joint Chiefs of Staff, takes questions from conference attendees during a morning plenary session at the 2012 Military Health System (MHS) Conference, held at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., Jan. 31, 2012. The MHS aims to ensure the medical readiness of U.S. service members, and to provide a ready medical force. (DoD photo by Johnny Bivera)  

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES

02.01.2012

Story by J Snyderman 

Defense Health Agency

By Sandra Abrams

WASHINGTON - Tremendous strides made in military medicine during the last decade of war have helped increase the survival rate of wounded warriors to unprecedented levels, Navy Vice Adm. William E. Gortney, director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Navy Rear Adm. David L. Smith, director of medical resources for the Navy’s plans and policy division, reported at the 2012 Military Health System Conference, Jan. 31, 2012. And, they said, a number of advancements will provide lasting benefits at home and abroad.

“Thanks to your research, dedication and just plain hard work, this is the most survivable war in the history of combat,” Gortney said. “We’ve been able to get our critical casualties to the right care at the right time globally.”

Smith said increasingly fast evacuations are part of a remarkable success story. "If you make it alive to one of our medical facility you have a better than 98 percent chance of survival."

Gortney credits much of this success to the innovative tactical combat casualty care approach to battlefield care, which includes Army medevac teams and the Air Force critical care air transport teams.

Beyond combat care, Gortney described progress in rehabilitation, understanding of traumatic brain injury and other invisible wounds of war such as post-traumatic stress disorder. He said work continues with many efforts centered at the Defense Centers of Excellence. “Just pay a visit to the National Intrepid Center of Excellence and the Defense Veterans’ Brain Injury Center and the Veterans Affairs poly trauma centers at Walter Reed and you’ll see the tremendous progress being made in understanding the challenges of TBI and PTSD,” Gortney said.

He also cited progress in health data collection and analysis methods, which will continue to produce improvements as data is culled for lessons learned and as best practices are adopted. He said data tools, including ongoing joint assessments, will continue and expand in their tracking of the invisible wounds of war.

Both Gortney and Smith also noted progress in how the U.S. military supports global health efforts such as humanitarian and disaster assistance missions in line with U.S. strategic interests.

Smith said current assistance to Afghanistan in building a heath care system provides lessons that may benefit efforts in other developing nations. He described the three-pronged approach underway in Afghanistan to care for the coalition, help Afghan National Security Forces care for its troops and support the development of the civil section of Afghanistan's health system.

“This type of work and development is key to most counter-insurgency efforts. This line of effort, however, is very complex and incredibly challenging for those involved in it," Smith said.

On the home front, both Gortney and Smith pledged ongoing support to returning wounded warriors, their families and transitioning veterans and a commitment to supporting the nation’s priorities through the development of joint capabilities and solutions. He noted, for example, work towards one seamless DoD/VA electronic health record that will integrate, “two of the largest health records systems on the planet.”

For more on the 2012 MHS conference, to watch plenary session videos and view photos, visit heath.mil/2012mhsconference.

• Date Taken: 02.01.2012
• Date Posted: 02.01.2012 15:05
• Story ID: 83149
• Location: WASHINGTON, DC, US