Army Medical Logistics Command provides training, works to increase accountability for medical devices

By C.J. LovelaceJune 9, 2020

Soldiers from the 28th Combat Support Hospital take part in a joint inventory at Sierra Army Depot in Herlong, California, before medical equipment and supplies are shipped to their home station at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Soldiers from the 28th Combat Support Hospital take part in a joint inventory at Sierra Army Depot in Herlong, California, before medical equipment and supplies are shipped to their home station at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. (Photo Credit: Ellen Crown) VIEW ORIGINAL
A Soldier repairs a medical device at the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Agency’s Medical Maintenance Operations Division at Tobyhanna Army Depot in Pennsylvania.
2 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A Soldier repairs a medical device at the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Agency’s Medical Maintenance Operations Division at Tobyhanna Army Depot in Pennsylvania. (Photo Credit: Ellen Crown) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT DETRICK, Md. -- The complexities of medical devices can be confusing, especially when it comes to devices contained within larger medical sets.

Without correct cataloging procedures, medical devices can be difficult to track and maintain, which can jeopardize readiness levels. Accurate records for medical devices in the field enable readiness by ensuring they can be properly maintained, as well as provide maintenance personnel situational awareness on their whereabouts and functional status.

To help educate the force on best practices and usage of preferred information systems, U.S. Army Medical Logistics Command hosted a series of online training classes to help Soldiers and civilians create records and account for medical devices within sets.

Over 150 participants across active-duty, Reserve and National Guard units took part in at least one of the four sessions, held between May 28 and June 2.

With goals of increasing accountability and overall readiness, education remains a priority for medical maintenance leaders within AMLC, headquartered at Fort Detrick.

“We think this class is very beneficial in support of getting true visibility of these devices and providing support to the force,” Chief Warrant Officer 3 Joshua Barto told participants at the start of one session.

During the online classes, offered by AMLC’s Medical Maintenance Policy and Analysis (M2PA) directorate, trainers overviewed steps to identify on-hand equipment, generate set component hand receipts and reconcile maintenance-significant components found within a set.

That information must then be uploaded for inventory in the Global Combat Support System-Army (GCSS-Army), allowing for identification of set components in the Medical Materiel Information Portal when component lists do not exist in GCSS-Army.

Barto, chief of publications for M2PA, said the training aimed to assist Soldiers and civilians in “understanding the intricacies of identifying medical devices within sets.”

“That tends to be a challenge for supply managers that aren’t as familiar with medical as a commodity,” he said. “We want to educate and provide best practices to help assist so the Army has better accountability of our devices.”

The training sessions were geared toward unit-level maintenance managers, supply Sergeants and hand receipt holders, but also brigade-level non-commissioned officers, property book officers and company commanders.

Organizers urged class attendees to take what they learned and help share it among their units to ensure readiness and stay up-to-date with maintenance requirements.