Let me ask you this: how much fun did you have during your last battle simulation exercise and did it have any training value? My guess is, not much. You set up your tactical operations center, started running 24-hour operations (OPS), and waited for the occasional medical Master Scenario Events List to be inserted and you processed it manually, probably using a combination of email and spreadsheets.
Have you heard of the Joint Medical Work Station (JMeWS) of the Medical Situational Awareness in the Theater (MSAT) portal? MSAT (formally JMeWS) is the closest automated solution the medical community has to a mission command system. It is a web-enabled application which resides on the SIPR network. In theory, if you have a SIPR internet connection then you have access to MSAT and to the data being produced by the medical encounters inputted in to AHLTA-T, updates to the medical situational report (MEDSITREP), and Annex Q. All this data can provide a medical command and control unit situational awareness of the battle space.
Okay, so what? Well, MC4 has developed a simulation tool called the Simulation Medical Data Server (SMDS) that can stimulate the MSAT application, which means the OPS and clinical operations (CLINOPS) sections within your unit can view real-time casualties during the simulation exercise; however, it was not connected with actual battle simulation. This is a stand-alone application (typical for the Army Medical Department), which was tested during the 44th Medical Brigade's (MED BDE) combined training exercise, as they prepared for their Afghanistan mission.
After the successful test with the 44th MED BDE, MC4 decided SMDS needed to be integrated into the Joint Land Component Constructive Training Capability (JLCCTC) simulation federation. This integration will allow the senior medical staff officer and medical command and control units to participate in a large joint simulation exercise using their “go-to-war” system in an automated manner like their logistics counterparts and BCS3.
To make the integration a reality, MC4 partnered with the Logistic Exercise Simulation Directorate, the material developer for the Joint Deployment Logistics Module (JDLM). Why JDLM? JDLM is the JLCCTC's logistics solution for all joint and Army simulation exercises. It is the casualty generator that produces over 300 different injuries and diseases. The fidelity of the data is patient name, Social Security number, rank, gender, assigned unit, class VIII consumed and more.
There were some functional issues, like connectivity (when is that not an issue), medical unit relationships and non-realistic patient play, to name a few. While this tool is in the crawl stage of development, the good news is that the interface between JDLM and SMDS worked as designed and passed the data to the MSAT server.
SMDS was successfully integrated into JDLM and was first used during Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) 2011. The initial bugs were resolved and the medical training audience during UFG 2011 was able to see patients flow from role 1 units to role 3 units, and determine if a Chemical, Biological, Radiological; Nuclear Enhanced Conventional Weapon event had taken place.
We are ready to walk.