Comprehensive Decision Support for Prehospital Combat Casualty Care: The Airway Clearance Model

Airway management is a foremost priority for combat medics treating battlefield casualties, as a compromised airway is the second leading cause of potentially survivable death on the battlefield, accounting for 1 in 10 preventable combat deaths. Effective suction is a critical component of airway clearance. However, currently available commercial devices are too heavy and bulky for combat medics to carry, and/or lack sufficient power to be useful. Clinical decision support systems (DSS) can close the gap between existing commercial devices and their clinical use and enhance combat medic clinical performance by providing the right "tooth-to-tail" tools to accomplish the task of clearing the airway. Our DSS approach will provide a focused, real-time set of guidelines and recommendations that are tailored to the combat medic. Our proposal will create a knowledge-based algorithm and clinical guideline regarding the use of suction, delivering to the combat medic the "right information, to the right person, in the right format, through the right channel at the right time."