Advise and Assist: A Basic Medical Skills Course for Partner Forces

Area of Science:

• Military Medicine
• Emergency Medical Services
• International Health

Background:

• Battlefield first-responder medical skills are crucial for US military advise-and-assist operations.
• A training curriculum was developed for non-English speaking Turkish, Azerbaijani, and Albanian military personnel deployed in Afghanistan.
• The curriculum focused on high-yield medical skills to prevent battlefield deaths.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the effectiveness of a novel medical skills training curriculum.
• To improve battlefield first-responder capabilities among foreign military partners.
• To enhance proficiency and self-assessed comfort in critical medical procedures.

Main Methods:

• A 2-hour curriculum covered scene safety, tourniquet application, wound bandaging, and patient transportation.
• Standardized didactic and practicum training was delivered by combat medics.
• Pre- and post-training assessments evaluated skill proficiency (Dreyfus model) and self-reported comfort levels.

Main Results:

• 187 participants received training across five classes.
• All participants improved from novice to advanced beginner skill level in all four areas.
• Significant improvements in self-reported comfort were noted for all skills (p < .001).
• Tourniquet application showed the largest increase in median comfort level post-training.

Conclusions:

• The curriculum effectively improved both assessed proficiency and self-reported comfort in basic battlefield medical skills.
• This framework may guide future development of medical training for foreign military personnel.
• Outcome measures had limitations, but the curriculum offers a valuable model for similar training initiatives.