Page 148 - JSOM Summer 2020

MSF volunteers risk their lives to provide much needed medi- standards of care and to provide the best possible chance of
cal relief to people in conflict zones and areas affected by nat- survival for casualties. Logistical support comes from work-
ural disasters and epidemics. ing directly with host nations and local forces to coordinate
movement and transport of personnel and equipment. To en-
sure that medical supplies are certified and up to the highest
Global Surgical and Medical Support Group
standard, GSMSG maintains control of all items from depar-
The Global Surgical and Medical Support Group “GSMSG” ture to arrival at forward operating clinics staffed by GSMSG
is a nonprofit organization based out of Washington, DC, in personnel. GSMSG states that there are rarely occurrences of
the United States. GSMSG was founded by Dr Aaron Epstein hold-ups where medical supplies and equipment fail to reach
who holds an MD degree from Georgetown’s School of Med- destined locations.
icine and an MA degree in Intelligence and Security Studies
from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service, and who is a Modern surgical and imaging technologies are limited in ar-
Fulbright Specialist in global healthcare development. GSMSG eas of operation. In order to combat this problem, GSMSG
is dedicated to providing medical relief to communities in con- relies heavily on the expert training of its staff. Surgeons and
flict zones around the world. While many of their efforts are in medical staff are highly trained with a number of different dis-
Iraq, GSMSG is also present in other Middle Eastern countries ciplines ranging from neurosurgery to cardiothoracic trauma.
and parts of Africa where the local healthcare systems are often This wide array of medical knowledge and experience ensures
overwhelmed and lack resources, leaving patients in desperate that GSMSG is able to provide the highest level of care to
need of care. GSMSG is a full-spectrum provider of medical patients regardless of the situation in which they find them-
care and training, ranging from front-line combat casualty care selves. To ensure that patients have every chance of recovery,
to nursing and primary care to advanced surgical specialties surgeons must often use a less conventional approach to sur-
such as cardiothoracic surgery. GSMSG sends teams of physi- gery that healthcare systems in the United States and other
cians, surgeons, nurses, and medics from the United States to modern countries might consider outdated or unnecessary.
work alongside and train local medical personnel, providing Even when considering basic medical examinations, medical
much-needed medical relief to their local and refugee popula- personnel must often call upon years of experience and funda-
tions. GSMSG teams in Iraq, for example, have trained more mental skills to assess patients. This simply means that medical
than 2000 local physicians, surgeons, nurses, and medics on providers must use a more hands-on approach and use palpa-
the best practices and the highest standard of care. tion and auscultation more abundantly.

GSMSG has spent the last few years working to develop sus- To ensure quality of care of patients, GSMSG integrates with
tainable, long-term medical solutions by providing education all host nation medical facilities in their area of operation.
and advanced training to indigenous medical personnel. This However, they do not tend to work with other NGOs unless
training offers surgical, basic medical, and MEDEVAC pro- the partnering organization undergoes an extensive vetting
tocols to the host nation personnel, in order to improve the process to ensure that all activities are above board and all
personnel are fully qualified and credentialed. In addition to
host nation medical treatment facilities, GSMSG, at times, will
work with those run by US and foreign militaries. By building
relationships with surrounding medical support, GSMSG can
mitigate the logistical limitations that otherwise might affect
patient treatment and care.

GSMSG operates solely by donations and by an all-volunteer
staff. The GSMSG volunteers are primarily US military veter-
ans, with a heavy emphasis on the Special Operations com-
munity, who became medical professionals or were medical
professionals while in service. This has proven to be beneficial
when vetting and assessing skill level of applicants. Volunteers
receive room, board, and accommodations free of charge, but
are required to pay for airfare and a one-time onboarding/
personnel processing fee.
Because GSMSG is not funded or backed by any govern-
ment or military entity, the threat of involvement in conflict
is always present. GSMSG is neutral and unbiased in conflict
areas, treating whoever comes through the door. The organi-
zation holds no religious or political stance. They provide all
services, free of cost, to any injured person, regardless of race,
ethnicity, religion, or creed, not limited to medical training and
support. GSMSG operates with the idea that the populations
they serve need to become self-sufficient. In order to accom-
plish this goal, GSMSG believes that the organization should
not plan to remain in the long term in the locations in which
they operate. Instead, GSMSG provides training to host nation
personnel so that eventually the organization can withdraw

146 | JSOM Volume 20, Edition 2 / Summer 2020