USAFSAM - Aeromedical Evacuation

En Route Care Training
 
Mission:  To educate and train Total Force medical personnel responsible for delivering basic and advanced en route care capabilities within the aeromedical evacuation system using the most advanced modalities and realistic mission environments possible, and to provide potent training venues to fulfill clinical currency and readiness skills requirements. 
 
Vision: To be the Center of Excellence for En Route Care Education and Training.
 
About Our Department:
The En Route Care Training Department (ET), part of the 711th Human Performance Wing’s  U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine (USAFSAM), provides initial, advanced and continuing en route care and currency education and training for Total Force nurses, physicians, medical technicians and respiratory therapists, as well as Department of Defense and international military medical personnel involved in delivering capabilities for the aeromedical evacuation system to ensure safe and optimal outcomes during patient movement. The department employs various high-tech, high-fidelity patient manikin simulators and maintains a KC-135, C-17, four C-130’s, a partial 767 aircraft fuselage, and a UH-60 Black Hawk trainers to provide enhanced multi-modal learning in more realistic care delivery environments. Plans are underway to add a 767-2C to the trainer fleet. Concentrating on currency training, staff assigned to the department’s four Centers for Sustainment of Trauma and Readiness Skills (C-STARS) and the Sustained Medical and Readiness Trained Regional Currency Site (SMART RCS) are significantly involved in both en route and trauma care research.

Divisions/Units
 
Academic Operations
The Academic Operations (ETA) Division provides academic assistance to the entire En Route Care Training Department, including all divisions described below. ETA is also the point of contact with USAFSAM’s Office of the Dean. Personnel in this division focus on Blackboard management, formal training management scheduler within the medical readiness decision support system, end of course evaluations, registration and student scheduling, simulation management, continuing education for staff, academic affairs, curriculum development, credentialing, and clinical validation committee reviews.
 
Technical Operations
The Technical Operations (ETT) Division provides mission support assistance to the En Route Care Training Department by coordinating data management and analysis, training affiliation and memorandum of agreements management, IM/IT management, logistics, safety, security, Defense Medical Human Resource System internet, statistician, equipment management, space utilization, high bay management, tour management, new site development and contract management.
 
Initial Inflight Care
The Initial Inflight Care (ETI) Division provides foundational aeromedical evacuation ground training to nurses and technicians. Courses include the Flight Nurse (FN), Aeromedical Evacuation Technician (AET), Critical Care Air Transport (CCAT)-Initial, Ground Surgical Team (GST) Austere Training, and the Enlisted Critical Care (ECC). These courses are described in more detail below.
 
  • The FN and AET course content includes altitude physiology, stresses of flight, in-flight nursing care considerations, patient safety, medical equipment, aircraft configurations, mission requirements and crew resource management. The FN course is an AFSC awarding course (46F) and provides 80 hours of continuing education units.  The AET course provides six Community College of the Air Force credit hours. Instruction modalities include focused lectures, hands-on equipment, medical supply familiarization and AE mission simulations using high-tech patient simulators. 
     
  • The CCAT-Initial course (ETII) educates and trains critical care experienced physicians, nurses and respiratory therapists assigned to CCAT team Unit Type Codes (UTCs) in the fundamentals of CCAT.  Course content includes altitude physiology, crew resource management, patient movement items, UTC equipment and supply allowance standards, the Joint Trauma Training System and Clinical Practice Guidelines. Utilizing high-fidelity patient simulators, each 3-member multi-disciplinary team is stepped through and later evaluated on their performance during realistic AE mission profiles with critical care patients aboard three different fixed-wing aircraft fuselage trainers. CCAT-Initial is a prerequisite to the CCAT-Advanced course in Cincinnati, Ohio.
     
  • The GST Austere Training course provides Unit Type Code training for Air Force physicians, nurses, administrators and surgical technicians to function as a small surgery team located in austere environments. Course content includes clinical practice guidelines, surgery management, command and control in austere locations.
     
  • The ECC course provides AFSC specialty experience identifier award training for Air Force medical technicians in the critical care environment.
 
Centers for Sustainment of Trauma and Readiness Skills (C-STARS)
C-STARS Baltimore is located at the University of Maryland Medical Center in the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, Maryland. This multi-disciplinary cadre provides education and hands-on training on ground-based expeditionary medical capabilities with a focus on patient resuscitation, damage control surgery, and intensive care.  C-STARS Baltimore supports the 711 HPW’s medical research team.
 
C-STARS Cincinnati is located at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. This site is the platform for the CCAT-Advanced training. Instruction for critical care physicians, critical care nurses and respiratory therapists includes airworthy medical equipment, table of allowances/supplies, implementation of the JTTS, CPGs during trauma and critical care high-fidelity simulation training. C-STARS Cincinnati supports the 711 HPW’s medical research team, managing an investment portfolio of $19 million spread over 32 projects.
 
C-STARS St Louis is located at Saint Louis University Hospital and Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri. This multi-disciplinary cadre provides education and hands-on training on ground-based expeditionary medical capabilities with a focus on patient resuscitation, damage control surgery, and intensive care.
 
C-STARS Omaha is located at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska. This infectious disease cadre provides AFSC specific infectious disease and biocontainment skills. The training focuses on hands-on, high acuity in-patient care. This site opened in October 2019, and its course content is still under development.
 
Sustained Medical and Readiness Trained (SMART) Regional Currency Sites 
SMART Regional Currency Site (RCS) Las Vegas is located at the University Medical Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. This multi-disciplinary RCS cadre provides education and hands-on training on ground-based expeditionary medical capabilities with a focus on patient resuscitation, damage control surgery, and intensive care. 
 
Contact Information
USAFSAM.ET.Educationand Trng@us.af.mil