Distributed Medical Training for Force Mobilization and Disaster Response

Non trauma surgeons mobilized to support military operations are often ill prepared for the challenges of trauma surgery. Training to date has not bridged the gap between their experience and abilities and the rigor of their assignment. The objective of this research project is to develop a robust, modular, and deployable online training system proven to enhance the trauma training of non trauma surgeons. The work will be an extension and scaling up of the Phase I prototype, with the overlay of instructional research to maximize training effectiveness. The contingency-based and best practices trauma decision trees will be updated beyond airway management to include the other nine trauma modules, and a battery of case studies will be developed to provide experiential learning for simple and compound trauma. The resulting training system will be modular, self paced and interactive and will include electronic decision trees, tutorials, assessments and dozens of case studies. The system will be tested with military medical personnel in the United States, Afghanistan, and Iraq.