Page 77 - Journal of Special Operations Medicine - Winter 2014

Figure 18 Reported importance of various characteristics in the current programs can meet their current and future
a medical sustainment program. needs.

These changes can be guided by the feedback SFMS pro-
vided in this study based on the characteristics they desire
in a sustainment program. These would include: high-
quality education and training by subject matter experts,
actual patient care, availability at all times, instruction in
new technology, and integration into other training events.

Major barriers to conducting medical sustainment train-
ing appear to be administrative requirements and the
need to sustain their training in other areas. As ODA
members operate as a team, much of their training needs
to be conducted as a group, and finding time for medics
to improve their medical skills outside of team training
can be difficult. As the medic is, by tradition, the adminis-
trative officer for the team, it is not surprising that SFMS
report that administrative requirements are an obstacle to
than direct action. While the ability to provide imme- conducting medical training. Here again, the needs of the
diate care to trauma casualties will remain important, team often come before the needs of the individual medic.
other skills, such as prolonged field care, nursing skills,
the treatment of chronic medical conditions, and the As expected, others’ opinions of medics’ medical skills
care of pediatric and obstetrical care will become more are important to SFMS, and they want to be perceived
important. The results of this study revealed that SFMS as competent and capable medical technicians. They
are already thinking about future missions and the need rank the opinion of their teammates, their peers, as most
to improve their medical skills in areas beyond trauma important to them, but the opinion of their medical
management. and command supervisors are quite important, as well.
While they feel supported by their medical supervisors
SFMS rated the maintenance of their medical skills as and Command, they feel that the support and emphasis
the most important skillset they needed to sustain. In from the Command is limited to meeting the minimum
addition to trauma and surgical skills, they reported credentialing requirements to deploy, as opposed to im-
needing a mix of medical skills to support longitudinal proving their medical knowledge. This suggests that the
care, such as acute medical care, physical therapy, pedi- credentialing requirements for SFMS are a significant
atric care, obstetrical/gynecological care, and preventive driver in resource allocation for the Command and may
medicine, to conduct their combat missions, and SFMS need to be changed for the Command to support SFMS
strongly believed that conducting medical sustainment spending more time sustaining their medical skills.
training would improve the quality of the care they
could provide while deployed. While their overall evalu- This study suggests that SFMS feel that the medical sus-
ation of their ability to perform their medical duties on tainment program needs to be improved within the con-
no-notice missions implies confidence in their medical fines of the current program, with an emphasis on NTM
skills, respondents stated that they needed more training and MPT. These changes could be directed by seeking to
in all areas. SFMS maintained a high level of confidence improve the current system with the feedback provided
that they could maintain their skills in an ideal medical by the medics that suggests that they would like more
sustainment program and suggested that changes to the sustainment training to involve actual patient care un-
current program need to be made to improve their capa- der the supervision of a subject matter expert, such as
bility and readiness. a physician or physician assistant. A potential solution
might be to seek increased medical credentialing for
SFMS, however, suggested that only slight to moderate SFMS, similar to that of Independent Duty Corpsmen
changes to the current program are needed, and these in the US Navy, so that they can provide care in military
changes varied among the different parts of the sustain- treatment facilities on a regular basis. While gaining and
ment program. For the SOCMMSC component, med- maintaining these credentials would add to the training
ics only recommended slight changes, while moderate requirements of SFMS, they would provide additional
changes were recommended for the NTM and MPT com- emphasis on medical sustainment and would likely im-
ponents. This would suggest that wholesale changes to the prove the maintenance of medical skills and knowledge,
current program are unnecessary. Instead, adjustments to while also aligning with the stated preference of SMFS

Perceptions and Beliefs About Medical Sustainment Programs 67