Non-battle emergency department utilization of the first modular army field hospital prototype in support of operation INHERENT RESOLVE

Jason F. Naylor, Daniel B. Brillhart, Michael D. April, Steven G. Schauer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

Introduction: The 2010-2011 withdrawal from Iraq included the closure of all fixed-facility military medical resources. Operation INHERENT RESOLVE, the United States-led counter-terrorism mission in Iraq and Syria, subsequently commenced in 2014. With increasing combat operations, the 28th Combat Support Hospital deployed to Iraq to support that mission as a limited footprint unit prototyped after the new modular Army Field Hospital. We describe the non-battle utilization of the emergency medical treatment section. Methods: We prospectively collected data for this project as part of a performance improvement initiative to track healthcare utilization to guide emergency medical treatment section staffing. The project took place at a combat support hospital near Baghdad, Iraq from July 2016 through January 2017. Results: During this time, the emergency department (ED) averaged 3.5 visits per day totaling 675 non-battle encounters. Most (84.6%) were U.S. military personnel with a median age of 32 (IQR 26-38). The most common procedure performed was point-of-care ultrasound (n = 33). Most patients (96.9%) underwent discharge from the ED. Of the 21 subjects admitted, 6 were for surgical intervention and the remaining for medical or observational indications. The most common chief complaints were musculoskeletal (31.1%, n = 210), respiratory (15.3%, n = 103), and dermatologic (12.0%, n = 81). Conclusions: Non-battle injuries and illnesses were the predominant reason for ED utilization. Most subjects were discharged back to duty with relatively low-resource utilization. Few visits required procedural interventions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article numberusy357
Pages (from-to)e168-e171
JournalMilitary medicine
Volume184
Issue number5-6
DOIs
StatePublished - May 1 2019
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

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