JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas — The Medical Capability Development Integration Directorate conducted their seminar-based limited objective experiment April 4-7.
The Medical CDID Experimentation Division executed and designed the event to determine the impacts of providing whole blood at the point of need during large scale combat operations.
More than 105 joint service representatives from 35 organizations across the Military Health System and operational force attended the experiment to provide input and inform whole blood requirements at the strategic level for the Army of 2030.
Lt. Gen. Scott McKean, Deputy Commanding General Army Futures Command and Director, Futures and Concepts Center, shared past operational challenges and emphasized the importance of blood at the point of need. McKean highlighted, "Whole blood sets the conditions in medical operational planning for tactical front line leaders. Three pivotal blood constraints exist in terms of storage, distribution and capacity, but your mission is to determine how to overcome these challenges to support the warfighter."
A primary mission of the Med CDID Experimentation Division is to perform simulations that examine Multi-Domain Operational concepts and capabilities and identify and validate potential operational risks and gaps that ultimately inform modernization efforts.
Col. James Jones, Medical CDID director, encouraged participants to use a strategic framework in terms of people, time, and money to provide recommended solutions across the Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leadership, Personnel, Facilities, and Policy (DOTMLPF-P) domains to support whole blood at the point of need.
Jones reminded participants that “large-scale combat operations may require large quantities of whole blood or blood products at the point of need in order to conserve the fighting strength, support prolonged care, and save lives!”
Future battles will be fought as a team and as such every service needs a voice at the table. This experiment allowed joint forces stakeholders to bring varying levels of experience and knowledge to the event.
The Air Force Medical Service, Medical Research Development Command, Medical Center of Excellence, and the Futures and Concepts Center provided briefings. The academic briefs set the conditions for the remainder of the week, which involved diverse participants from tactical, operational, and strategic organizations discussing four vignettes that challenged the logistical blood delivery impacts during LSCO scenarios.
Lt. Col. Christopher Evans, Medical CDID Capability Manager, represents medical laboratory services across the Army Enterprise and is the lead integrator in driving change post-experimentation. Evans stated, “The Whole Blood at the Point of Need Experiment will provide joint solutions for delivering whole blood on the battlefield to save lives and preserve combat power.”
The Medical CDID will use the findings to develop an analysis plan that will affect whole blood at the point of need modernization initiatives influencing DOTMLPF-P across Army Medicine.
The participant’s feedback is vital to the success of the experiment. This feedback will help the Medical CDID drive material and non-material recommended changes to ensure blood is available far forward for our warfighters.
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