Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps
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This paper examines some of the medical problems arising from the successful deployment of Defence Medical Services personnel to Op OLYMPICS (mid-June 2012-September 2012). It does not aim to be all encompassing in its scope, but focuses on the most pressing issues affecting a junior military doctor's ability to work effectively under field conditions. This will entail a discussion about whether in a deployment such as Op OLYMPICS medical care should be based upon offering solely primary healthcare in medical centres or using Role 1 medical treatment facilities, which include primary healthcare and pre-hospital emergency care. The main recommendations arising from the deployment are: clinicians should deploy with a minimum of basic emergency drugs and equipment; a medical facility treating a large population at risk for a prolonged period should have a broad stock of medications available on site; and medical risk assessments must be performed on all Reservists during mobilisation.
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Comment
The Role 1 capability review: mitigation and innovation for Op HERRICK 18 and into contingency.
The Role 1 orientated JRAMC of September 2012 was a welcome addition to the body of Role 1 literature. In particular, the Role 1 capability review by Hodgetts and Findlay detailed both current issues and future aspirations for Role 1 provision. This personal view considers issues still prevalent during Op HERRICK 18 namely the provision of primary healthcare by combat medical technicians on operations and the organisational issues that contribute to historical structural and attitudinal obstructions to the employment of combat medical technicians in firm base primary healthcare. It also considers a dynamically updating dashboard capable of displaying risk across the Role 1 network with the implied move to a model of continuous healthcare assurance.
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To develop and run a primary healthcare (PHC) refresher package to address the range of clinical presentations to Combat Medical Technicians (CMTs) on deployment and improve their confidence and capability in providing PHC for Op Herrick 18, with particular regard to the first month of deployment. ⋯ By delivering a training package acceptable to the majority of medics, we have increased the confidence and capability of CMTs in delivering PHC within the context of their protocols and prepared them for their first month of deployment. It suggests that PHC delivery can be improved by such a package and consideration should be given to formalising this into a military training qualification.
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The Defence Medical Services (DMS) primarily recruits its trained General Practitioners (GPs) from the NHS and since 1970, the number of men entering medicine has doubled whereas the number of women has increased 10-fold; female GPs will outnumber their male counterparts by 2017. This study performs a quantitative assessment of the potential impact of feminisation of UK General Practice upon the DMS recruitment and workforce planning. ⋯ The national increase of only 3% infers feminisation of UK General Practice is not an immediate challenge for the DMS. Nevertheless, as feminisation of the UK GP workforce is expected to continue, the future cohort from whom the DMS will recruit its GPs is likely to contain increasing numbers of women. With the return to contingency, the DMS may wish to consider the implications of increasing numbers of female GPs upon service delivery in the UK and overseas, and explore more flexible medical employment models.
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The Role 3 Medical Treatment Facility (Field Hospital) in Camp Bastion (R3 Bastion) is acknowledged to be one of the busiest dedicated trauma facilities in the world. Casualties typically present with severe injuries and in physiological extremis. ⋯ They traverse the spectrum of clinical research, ranging from data collection to a randomised control trial. The aim is to discuss some of the problems encountered and the solutions that made it possible to undertake research in a theatre of operations, thereby providing a starting point for others who may wish to initiate research in a similar environment.