Employment of a joint medical task force in a counterinsurgency operational environment.

To understand the complexity of the medical task force mission in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, we must first understand the operational environment and its impact on the military healthcare system and the medical task force charged with its execution in theater. Historically the medical task force has focused almost exclusively on delivering a robust and accessible set of level II and III care and force health protection support since operations began in Iraq. Consequently, after 5 years of stable positioning, security, and infrastructure within our bases there were no discernable standardization of healthcare support, clinical quality, or medical equipment beyond what the units had chosen to adopt.

Medical civil-military operations: the deployed medical brigade's role in counterinsurgency operations.

Medical civil-military operations are a critical combat multiplier directly supporting the counterinsurgency fight. Army Medical Department Soldiers support medical civil affairs activities at all levels from platoon to the United States Mission-Iraq (Department of State) initiatives enhancing the legitimacy of medical services in the Iraq Ministry of Health, Ministry of Defense, Ministry of the Interior, and Ministry of Justice. The civil-military operations mission of the deployed Task Force 62 Medical Brigade has also evolved into a broad mission encompassing over 120 contractors including Iraqi-American, Bilingual Bicultural Advisors-Subject Matter Experts serving as case management liaison officers and medical trainers, as well as Iraqi Advisor Task Force members providing medical atmospherics, assessments, training, and the overall management of Iraqi linguists supporting all level III medical facilities.

Transition of the detainee healthcare system to a correctional model: an interagency approach.

The Army Medical Department (AMEDD) will play a key role in the transition of detainee healthcare operations from US control to a designated authority, whether it is Iraq or a third party. Although the AMEDD has garnered significant experience in the provision of detainee healthcare over the past 5 years, it would be prudent to implement an interagency approach to transitioning detainee healthcare. That transition must start with leveraging of the subject matter expertise of the US Bureau of Prisons and National Commission on Correctional Healthcare.

Enhancing recovery via neuro-rehab rounds.

The neurologically injured patient experiences physiological and psychological disruptions regardless of the type of severity of injury. Through increased knowledge, nurses planning care can minimize loss of functional ability, anticipate complications and enhance recovery. Neuro-rehab rounds were developed to increase the involvement of support therapies for the patient in the neurotrauma intensive care unit (ICU) of a particular hospital.