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Military healthcare challenges: deployed Role 1 healthcare delivery on Operation TRENTON. A personal view
  1. Gregory Dean Smith1 and
  2. A Wainscot2
  1. 1 2nd Signal Regiment, Imphal Barracks, YORK, Defence Primary Healthcare, Lichfield, Staffordshire, UK
  2. 2 (currently) Intermediate Command and Staff Course, Defence Primary Healthcare, Lichfield, Staffordshire, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Gregory Dean Smith, Regimental Medical Officer, 2nd Signal Regiment, Imphal Barracks, YORK, Defence Primary Healthcare, Lichfield YO10 4HD, UK; dean_smith_1{at}hotmail.com

Abstract

Op TRENTON is the UK response to support the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. This article documents a 5-month Engineering deployment after the UK Hospital had ended their mission and some of the medical challenges encountered. During this time, there were 2104 individual patient interactions recorded, with the main common illnesses being musculoskeletal injuries, gastrointestinal infection and dermatology. Given the nature of the tour, there were no battlefield-related injuries and trauma was limited to a handful of minor cases related to physical training or construction work. Recommendations for future deployments would include careful consideration of the required clinical skillsets, particularly identifying individuals who can undertake multiple secondary functions such as Primary Care Nurses, capable of patient care, ward management and Healthcare Governance.

  • primary care
  • rehabilitation medicine
  • public health

https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjmilitary-2020-001647

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors Both authors wrote components of the personal view. GDS assimilated and finalised the article.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Map disclaimer The depiction of boundaries on this map does not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of BMJ (or any member of its group) concerning the legal status of any country, territory, jurisdiction or area or of its authorities. This map is provided without any warranty of any kind, either express or implied.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.