Skill sets and competencies for the modern military surgeon: lessons from UK military operations in Southern Afghanistan.

Introduction: British military forces remain heavily committed on combat operations overseas. UK military operations in Afghanistan (Operation HERRICK) are currently supported by a surgical facility at Camp Bastion, in Helmand Province, in the south of the country. There have been no large published series of surgical workload on Operation HERRICK.

Injuries from roadside improvised explosive devices.

Background: After the invasion of Iraq in April 2003, coalition forces have remained in the country in a bid to maintain stability and support the local security forces. The improvised explosive device (IED) has been widely used by the insurgents and is the leading cause of death and injury among Coalition troops in the region.

Method: From January 2006, data were prospectively collected on 100 consecutive casualties who were either injured or killed in hostile action.

A review of casualties during the Iraqi insurgency 2006--a British field hospital experience.

Background: Following the invasion of Iraq in April 2003, British and coalition forces have been conducting counter-insurgency operations in the country. As this conflict has evolved from asymmetric warfare, the mechanism and spectrum of injury sustained through hostile action (HA) was investigated.

Method: Data was collected on all casualties of HA who presented to the British Military Field Hospital Shaibah (BMFHS) between January and October 2006.