Womack providers attend musculoskeletal care course

Photo By Twana Atkinson | After launching Fort Bragg’s Musculoskeletal Center of Excellence last September, medical professionals all across post attended the first annual Musculoskeletal Care for Military Providers  

FORT BRAGG, NC, UNITED STATES

01.03.2020

Courtesy Story

Womack Army Medical Center

WOMACK ARMY MEDICAL CENTER, FORT BRAGG, N.C. — After launching Fort Bragg’s Musculoskeletal Center of Excellence last September, medical professionals all across post attended the first Musculoskeletal Care for Military Providers Course.
The course enhanced the capabilities of military medical professionals to provide far forward capability and improve medical readiness though six weeks of intensive instruction and hands-on training in medical history taking, physical examination skills, and critical thinking when formulating consultations and profiles.
Robinson Health Clinic, the Army’s largest health clinic which cares for paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division and supporting line units, has evolved into Fort Bragg’s central hub for innovation in the care of Soldiers with musculoskeletal injuries.
The clinic’s medical director, Col. Matthew Hing, leads a multidisciplinary working group that meets regularly to generate new ideas for improving workflow efficiency and getting injured Soldiers back to duty faster in a condition that is functionally back to baseline – or better.
As part of the effort, Hing collaborated with Col. Kenneth Nelson, WA M C’s orthopedic trauma surgeon, and Col. Don Goss, officer in charge of physical therapy at WAMC, to create the interdisciplinary two-month training event.
“We have so many amazing military medical minds and upcoming initiatives on the horizon, but to fully tap into all this potential we must ultimately communicate, collaborate, educate, and integrate our way into a fully synchronized team,” said Hing.
The musculoskeletal working group is a diverse team of unit care coordinators, clinical researchers, surgeons, medics, physical therapists, dieticians, scholars, psychologists, and medical leaders.
“I think the classes will have a positive impact on medical readiness as providers become more comfortable managing musculoskeletal injuries and understand the new pathway for immediate referral to physical therapy for acute injuries,” according to Goss.
Nelson, who helped plan and teach the course added, “This also allows us to take care of the Soldiers closer to the point or time of injury. We want to enable physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and primary care providers to be comfortable taking care of these injuries so they don’t have to refer non-medical cases. I want them to be experts and get appropriate care started without needing to wait in the referral line.”
The course was designed to give military medical providers a better understanding of the normally anticipated course of healing for various types of musculoskeletal injuries. Providing emphasis and guidance on what to do when Soldiers fall off the glide path of healing from a musculoskeletal injury incurred during their training – whether that be a strained back during a night parachute jump or a sprained ankle during a 10-mile ruck march.
Hing urged, “We must not allow Soldier’s to ‘fall off the radar’ because they have a mission to ‘fight tonight’ on any moment’s notice.”
The MCMP curriculum was comprehensive. Every class topic was co-instructed by physician/surgeons and physical/occupational therapist speaking on a wide range of topics about musculoskeletal injuries commonly encountered when caring for Soldiers, with the recognition that they are really in every sense professional athletes – Soldier Athletes.
Students were encouraged to cultivate a mindset focused on expanding far forward capability, as growing multidimensional threats continue to change the nature of the modern battlefield.
Procedures such as aspiration of an elbow hematoma were taught on simulation models.
On the final day of the course, students received detailed instruction on future initiatives slated to launch at Fort Bragg – such as the Holistic Health and Fitness program, the opening of Ritz Epps Gym for reconditioning, and a Fitness for Duty Clinic.
Graduates of the course returned back to their units and military treatment facilities as subject matter experts in the musculoskeletal care of Soldiers. As an added benefit, participants received up to 48 category 1 continuing medical education credits – free of charge without the need for any temporary duty travel or expenses away from Fort Bragg.

• Date Taken: 01.03.2020
• Date Posted: 02.07.2020 15:50
• Story ID: 362211
• Location: FORT BRAGG, NC, US