The 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team (BCT) is leading the charge to extend use of the Army’s battlefield health information technology system to European-based garrison aid stations.

In 2008, the unit used the Medical Communications for Combat Casualty Care (MC4) system in Afghanistan for digital health recording, and was the first to engrain the tactical system in a garrison clinic in November 2008 at Vicenza, Italy. The 173rd BCT plans to expand the use of MC4 to two more treatment facilities in Bamberg and Schweinfurt, Germany, later this year.

Having documented patient care via MC4 in Afghanistan just 12 months prior, Brigade Operations Officer 1st Lt. Dana Love pressed to use the same system while in garrison to prepare his medical force for future deployments.

“The nature of this unit is to deploy, so I saw other options to be impractical solutions,” 1st Lt. Love said. “As a taxpayer, I believe that paying for a weapon, or computer system, and have it sit in a connex until the next time the unit deploys is money wasted. A weapon unused is a useless weapon.”

While some garrison aid stations currently use MC4 in the U.S. to capture medical information, such as the 82nd BCT at Fort Bragg, N.C., and clinics within the 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield, Ga., the 173rd BCT is making new use of MC4’s medical logistics capabilities to automate class VIII (medical) supply management.

Having not used the Defense Medical Logistics Standard Customer Assistance Module (DCAM) on MC4 systems during their Operation Enduring Freedom deployment, the unit’s medical logisticians conducted physical counts of lifesaving products in stock on a daily basis. They used spreadsheets to manage the class VIII data. When medications and equipment ran low, the staff used the only tools available to them—e-mail, fax and phone.

Human error and an imprecise supply chain contributed to the occasional discrepancy of supplies on the shelf not matching the paper-tracked inventory. Supplies were often delayed or failed to arrive at the correct location.

“No one should die because of the lack of medical supplies,” 1st Lt. Love said. “The use of DCAM helps to avoid this from happening, since the software provides us an improved method to electronically track and reorder class VIII supplies. Unit personnel are now better utilized in other parts of the aid station, instead of walking the shelves and counting the quantities of medications and bandages we have in stock.”

Using DCAM, 1st Lt. Love estimates that the unit has saved approximately 24 man-hours while fulfilling 375 orders electronically since November. The savings are a result of utilizing DCAM’s search feature and point-and-click functionality to submit orders, compared to writing out orders and sending them via fax. The application also helps 1st Lt. Love to save money by reducing unnecessary class VIII orders.

“I recently caught an order for $50,000 worth of new supplies of items that we already had in stock,” 1st Lt. Love said. “I review and verify all class VIII orders for the aid station before they are submitted to U.S. Army Medical Material Center Europe to be fulfilled. I saw this particular order, looked at the current inventory in the system and cancelled the order since it didn’t need to be placed. I believe that money should be spent in areas where the money will do the most good.”

Automation Eases Pressure on Local Clinic, Promotes Train as You Fight

Last year, timing was ideal for the local Vicenza Health Clinic, as it remained overwhelmed with a severe backlog of patients who often experienced long wait times. Members of the 173rd BCT quickly regrouped from their deployment and stepped in to relieve the garrison clinic’s work overload. When the new 173rd aid station opened for business, the staff of 10 began seeing approximately 65 patients every day.

The aid station first used paper forms to capture medical information and later implemented the MC4 system as an improved method of data collection. Lt. Col. John Birchfield, 173rd brigade surgeon, witnessed the transformation from paper to digital medical recording and credits the partnership between MC4’s technical support team and the medical staff for streamlining the workflow.

“I am impressed with the support MC4 provides, both in garrison and during deployments,” Lt. Col. Birchfield said. “This endeavor has helped to combine the functions our S6 shop, support operations and MC4 representatives into a unified technical support effort. It is this combination of support elements that is critical for success of this system. Additionally, the information that we collect at our facility feeds into the central data repository and this information is accessible by providers around the world.”

Today, the 173rd BCT aid station administers care to approximately 45 patients every day. While the patient flow has reduced, the role the system plays in preparing staff for future deployments continues to expand.

“The use of MC4 in garrison gives everyone the opportunity to develop a greater familiarly with the equipment to be used during future deployments,” 1st Lt. Love said. “We will be more self-sufficient and require less training, enabling us the ability to immediately support the war fighter when our boots hit the ground.”

For more information about MC4, visit www.mc4.army.mil.