Medical Simulation-Based Training System for Rapid Trauma Skills Training

The combat environment and nature of combat injuries make peacetime or pre-deployment teaching and practice of combat trauma surgery very difficult. The goal of this Phase II work is to develop a simulation-based system to enhance the training of US military surgeons in the essential skills of trauma surgery in a combat environment prior to being deployed. Surgeons preparing for deployment are rarely available for intensive and time-consuming training, therefore the Rapid Trauma Skills (RTS) model will be concise, modular, and challenging. Training priorities will focus primarily upon decisionmaking skills for specific combat trauma cases and clinical/pathophysiological scenarios as well as technical review for surgical approaches not commonly carried out in civilian peacetime practice. Working with seasoned combat surgeons, case scenario-based training will be used to develop time-sensitive decisionmaking and clinical management of combat injuries. The system to be prototyped and demonstrated in Phase II is a dynamic entity that will respond to evolutionary changes in combat environments. In the proposed work, SimQuest plans to demonstrate the prototype system’s capability to improve trauma surgery training in the uniquely demanding context of combat. It is designed to supplement and reinforce ongoing efforts to improve combat trauma care readiness.