U.S. Army Training at Ben Taub

Ask the average person "Who has the largest health care system in the nation that provides quality care to tens of thousands everyday?" and most people would not come up with the answer - the United States Army. However, our peacetime military does not care for large numbers of trauma patients. Now an agreement between the U.S. Army's Great Plains Regional Army Medical Command at Fort Sam Houston and the Harris County Hospital District will allow military personnel to receive trauma care training at Ben Taub General Hospital.

The six-week pilot program kicked off the first week of September with the arrival of a fully certified 20-team military critical care unit including surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, LVNs, medical technicians and one health services administrator.

"This is beneficial for both sides," says Dr. Kenneth Mattox, Ben Taub's chief of staff. "This is real-time experience. The trauma we see in our emergency center is very similar to what would be seen in a field of combat, for instance," he explains.

While the Army Trauma Team gets valuable training the military will simultaneously be providing highly trained quality health care to patients of Ben Taub, which welcomed the additional help without having to pick up the cost for it. The military's presence will not displace any current hospital medical personnel provided by Baylor College of Medicine.

Although similar arrangements have been worked out in the past with hospitals and military personnel on an individual basis, this is the first-ever program to train a military surgical team. Col. Cass W. Conoway, commander of the 41st Combat Support Hospital, says, "Ben Taub Hospital was chosen because of its reputation as one the country's premier trauma centers. We have been working on this agreement with Ben Taub and the Harris County Hospital District since Desert Storm. It has taken a long time to work out all the details, but I believe the arrangement was worth the wait."

It is hoped that this model of cooperation between the Department of Defense and Ben Taub will serve to create similar training programs in other civilian trauma centers in Texas and across the nation.

- LARRY JOHNSON

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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