Optimizing Mission-Specific Medical Threat Readiness and Preventive Medicine for Service Members.

Abstract

Deployments and mobilizations of Army Soldiers have been continuing processes and will be sustainable requirements for the foreseeable future. Global deployments often position service members in austere environments that can include exposure to biological threats that can significantly affect their health and medical readiness. Unit commanders and operations personnel bear the responsibility for researching and disseminating up-to-date information on potential biological threats including vector-borne diseases and zoonotic diseases. It has been a significant challenge to inform and prepare service members for the potential threats in Army Reserve units and units that do not have access to preventive medicine advisors. With the expanding list of known pathogens and the discovery and surveillance of emerging threats, it is extremely important for leaders and providers to have readily-available access to information about current, mission-specific biological threats. This article discusses the resources that are available to leaders, providers, and service members, and provides an organized resource for obtaining current and complete information on global biological threats that could affect combat readiness.