Military perspective on the civilian response to the London bombings July 2005

With the break up of the Warsaw Pact and changing global relations, current military deployments are becoming smaller and more expeditionary (e.g. Afghanistan, East Timor and Sierra Leone). During the Cold War, the use of weapons of mass effect was highly likely to have been seen on the battlefield. Ironically, the proliferation of CBRN agents and the knowledge of their application, as well as the manufacture of improvised explosive devices, have lead to the targeting of civilian populations by extremist groups. One of the benefits of military clinicians embedded in NHS hospital trusts, as well as a strong reservist cadre, is a greater understanding of the implications and management of asymmetric attacks against the U.K. The experience and skills of military clinicians may be of benefit to NHS trusts while this type of threat exists. Military clinicians are also likely to benefit from the experience that they get in certain NHS posts that provide skills that are readily transferable to military medicine. The events of 7th July highlighted the dynamic use of deployable medical resources and a rapid return to normal service provision. This type of 'Health Resilience' can only be achieved with a combination of effective emergency planning, on scene clinical risk management and clinical leadership.