Medical Readiness Efforts are Underway for DOD Training in Civilian Trauma Centers.
Abstract
Military medical personnel have almost no chance during peacetime to practice their battlefield trauma care skills. As a result, physicians both within and outside the Department of Defense (DOD) believe that military medical personnel are not prepared to provide trauma care to severely injured soldiers in wartime, which could result in the loss of lives and limbs. Because DOD must be better prepared to deliver trauma care during wartime, Congress enacted legislation in 1996 requiring DOD to implement a demonstration program that would provide trauma care training for military medical personnel through one or more public or nonprofit hospitals. This report responds to a requirement in that legislation that GAO evaluate the effectiveness of the demonstration program. Specifically, GAO (1) determined the status of the demonstration program and DOD's actions to meet the legislative provisions, (2) identified other initiatives aimed at training military personnel in trauma care, and (3) identified key issues that DOD should address if it decides to expand its trauma care training program.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 1998
- Accession Number
- ADA341091
Entities
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office