Operational Safety

Medical personnel working in operational environments frequently encounter weapons and explosives. Some personnel are issued firearms and need to be proficient with them, to protect themselves and their patients. Others will encounter weapons and explosives while providing care to patients. The safe handling of these materials is important for the safety of your patients, yourself, and your colleagues.

Also important is the ability of medical personnel to function safely in the unconventional settings of the field, aboard ships and aircraft, and in extremes of weather. Those medical workers who are stricken with gastrointestinal disease, frostbite, chilblains or heat exhaustion may no longer be effective in caring for patients. They have become a part of the problem.