Medical Simulation-Based Training System for Rapid Trauma Skills Training

No purely didactic program can fully prepare any peacetime surgeon for the challenges of combat trauma surgery. This type of surgery, often performed in resource-constrained environments and under adverse conditions, calls upon specialized decisionmaking patterns and skill sets. The purpose of this project is to develop a system for providing surgeons with the training and practice they will need to be successful combat surgeons when they are deployed. A rapid trauma skills training platform will be developed that will impart the necessary mindset for accurate decisionmaking and specific technical skills as appropriate to attain maximum readiness to perform combat surgery. With the help of an unparalleled panel of subject-matter experts, an advanced distributed learning, adult student-centered, case scenario-based product involving intelligent tutoring and assessment that is tailored to specific end-user needs will be developed. Using cases based on current conflicts, the system will prepare surgeons for the environments they are likely to encounter during deployment. A prototype system will be developed in Phase I and the groundwork laid for a transfer-of-training assessment.