Page 3 - Journal of Special Operations Medicine - Summer 2015

from the
PUBLISHER

Greetings JSOM readers! The definition of prolonged field care, as
first given by NATO SOF HQ in April
hether you know the expression 2013 and refined at the most recent 15
Was “A child does not grow up only April 2015 meeting, is as follows: “Field
in a single home” (Lunyoro [Banyoro] Michelle DuGuay Landers medical care, applied beyond ‘doctri-
proverb), “A child belongs not to one nal planning time-lines’ by an NSOCM
parent or home” (Kihaya [Bahaya] say- (NATO Special Operations Combat
ing), or “It takes a village to raise a child” (origin de- Medic) or higher, in order to decrease patient mortality
bated), the meaning remains the same. And the concept and morbidity. Utilises limited resources, and is sustained
is true. For the JSOM, we could not publish without until the patient arrives at an appropriate level of care.”
our community, or “village,” of dedicated peer review-
ers. After our Editorial Reviewers have approved a sub- According to Dr. Keenan, after careful consideration and
mission, it is sent to our subject matter experts for peer definition of the scope of PFC, the WG concluded that
review. Our peer reviewers go far beyond a simple ap- PFC is not a stage of Tactical Combat Casualty Care
proval or rejection. They often work with the author(s) and is not comprehensive medical care delivery in an
to ensure the content is correct and factual, the target austere setting. Although its principles may be applied
audience is identified, and the presentation is clear and when considering unconventional warfare scenarios and
concise. This rigorous process is necessary to ensure our en-route care considerations, for the purpose of discus-
readers receive the most up-to-date and accurate in- sions, it should be confined to the medical care provided
formation. We want all of our reviewers to know how to serious and critical casualties by the independent
much they are appreciated for their ongoing support of practitioner, through the spectrum of movement until
the JSOM. arrival at a more permanent or robust medical facility.

n n n In a new Ongoing Series in the Journal, we hope to ex-
pand the user’s education in this subspecialty of SOF
In the Fall 2015 issue of the JSOM, we are premiering a medicine, hosting literature and discussion relevant to
new Ongoing Series, the long-awaited “Prolonged Field PFC. The Fall issue will include two PFC WG posi-
Care,” which will be lead by COL Sean Keenan, MD. tion papers to begin and to frame future discussions—
COL Keenan explains that as we move out of the devel- “Operational Context for Prolonged Field Care” and
oped areas of conflict, Special Operations Forces (SOF) “Prolonged Field Care Capabilities”—as well as “Tour-
are faced with a new challenge of education and training niquet Conversion: A Recommended Approach in the
in the area of the treatment of casualties in remote and Prolonged Field Care Setting” by Brendon Drew, CDR,
austere environments. Although prolonged field care is MC, USN; David Bird, LCDR, MSC, USN; Michael
not a new body of knowledge, this challenge requires a Matteucci, CAPT, MC, USN; and Sean Keenan, COL,
shift in the approach and planning of training. MC, USA.

The SOCOM Prolonged Field Care Working Group For related topics and WG references, please see the
(PFC WG) was created in December 2013 to identify SOMA PFC Resources subpage at the SOMA website
and address knowledge gaps in our current approach (www.specialoperationsmedicine.org). An additional re-
to SOF medical training. The PFC WG “develops a fo- source hosting the latest in education, ongoing discus-
rum for discussion, education and training and suggests sions, podcasts, and a host of other resources, please visit
medical efforts to better prepare SOF for medical and prolongedfieldcare.org.
operational planning, and execution of medical evalua-
tion, treatment, and evacuation, of critical and serious —Michelle DuGuay Landers
casualties, managed in an austere environment.”