Critical Care Nursing Department, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD.
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, TX.
Med J (Ft Sam Houst Tex). 2022 Apr-Jun(Per 22-04/05/06):56-61.
In 2018, the Expeditionary Resuscitative Surgical Team 3 (ERST-3) published a retrospective review on the ground casualty evacuation (CASEVAC) options available to a Special Operations Forces (SOF) unit in the Horn of Africa. Seventeen months following their deployment, ERST-7 provided an update on the improvised ground evacuation platforms in the same area of operations and what has and has not worked based on combat experience and new literature.
This publication is an update to a retrospective review of various modes of ground transportation used by ERST-7 during their deployment with Special Operations Command Africa from July 2020 to January 2021. The authors excluded all hand-carried litter and air evacuation platforms. The authors discuss litter setup, necessary modifications, litter capacity, strengths and weaknesses, and any recommendations for a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle, a full-size pickup truck, and a mid-size pickup truck based on their use during the ERST-7 deployment. The authors also used previous literature to support their recommendations.
The SOF unit to which ERST-7 was assigned still uses two of the four platforms included in the original study. The authors recommend continued use of the MRAP for patient extraction with a solely widthwise patient configuration, weather-proofing the open beds of MRAPs, and outfitting all MRAPs for Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) if the CASEVAC-designated MRAP is disabled. The pickup trucks functioned well for expedient CASEVAC under non-hostile conditions. However, they should be a last resort for CASEVAC outside friendly-controlled areas due to inadequate cover and concealment for patients and medical personnel providing enroute care.
Vehicles of opportunity available to SOF personnel are constantly changing. Continuous evaluation of local platforms is crucial, especially for partner force personnel who may not have access to dedicated air and ground MEDEVAC platforms. The authors recommend baseline readiness training on CASEVAC scenarios for those units traveling to areas without MEDEVAC assets.
2018 年，远征复苏外科医疗队 3 号（ERST-3）发表了一篇关于在非洲之角的特种作战部队（SOF）单位可用的地面伤员后送（CASEVAC）选项的回顾性评论。在部署后 17 个月，ERST-7 提供了同一作战区域内临时地面撤离平台的最新信息，并根据作战经验和新文献提供了哪些有效和无效的信息。
本出版物是对 ERST-7 在 2020 年 7 月至 2021 年 1 月期间与非洲特种作战司令部部署期间使用的各种地面运输方式的回顾性评论的更新。作者排除了所有手携式担架和空中撤离平台。作者讨论了担架的设置、必要的修改、担架容量、优缺点，并根据 ERST-7 部署期间的使用情况，就地雷防护伏击保护（MRAP）车辆、全尺寸皮卡和中型皮卡提出了建议。作者还使用了以前的文献来支持他们的建议。
分配给 ERST-7 的 SOF 单位仍在使用原始研究中包含的四个平台中的两个。作者建议继续使用 MRAP 进行仅宽度方向的患者配置的患者提取，对 MRAP 的开放床位进行防水处理，并为所有 MRAP 配备战术战斗伤员救治（TCCC）装备，如果指定的 CASEVAC-MRAP 无法使用。在非敌对条件下，皮卡可用于快速 CASEVAC。然而，由于对患者和提供途中护理的医疗人员的覆盖和掩护不足，它们应该是在友好控制区之外进行 CASEVAC 的最后手段。
SOF 人员可用的机会车辆不断变化。对当地平台的持续评估至关重要，特别是对于可能无法获得专用空中和地面 MEDEVAC 平台的伙伴部队人员。作者建议那些前往没有 MEDEVAC 资产的地区的单位进行 CASEVAC 场景的基线准备培训。
