Indigenous military or civilians
Other units in area
Extended time periods (forty-eight to seventy-two hours without CASEVAC or resupply)
Think equipment
Think drugs
Existing facilities and indigenous medical personnel
Assess Medical Threats
It is crucial to properly assess all potential medical threats. Leaders should ensure they have the most up-to-date area study and make use of all available resources. Assess vulnerabilities immediately and institute proper countermeasures.
Training
Training applies not only to the leader but also to the members of the unit. In addition, work with the host nation’s military and local civilians to ensure proper assistance in a medical situation.
Pre-Mission Activities
Before a mission, check that all medical information and supplies are in order:
Perform records maintenance—know your team (allergies, illnesses, injuries, family history)
Perform physicals and immunizations
Ensure accurate blood types for all personnel
Maintain equipment and supplies
Inventory every six months
Know every piece of equipment and its use, function, and maintenance
Replace or add supplies or equipment
Replace soon-to-expire medications
Train all team members in basic first responder medicine
Identify team members who can be trained to a minimum of combat lifesaver level
Prepare for mass casualty situations
Isolation/Planning Phase
Prepare a medical area study that includes prevalent diseases, an evacuation net, and a list of medical equipment needed. Be sure to factor in mission requirements. Initiate vaccinations and administer prophylactic drugs based on the results of the area study.
Exfiltration Phase
Coordinate evacuation of sick, wounded, and dead as required, stressing safety above all. Also account for all medical supplies used during the mission.
Post-Mission Phase
Complete the following post-mission:
Turn in controlled drugs
Complete a medical area assessment/AAR
File SF600s in medical records
Follow up with treatments and consults
Continue drug prophylaxis
Complete labs (PPD, HIV)
Inventory and restock medical supplies
Perform equipment maintenance and repair
OPERATIONS SECURITY
All measures taken to maintain security and achieve tactical surprise constitute operations security (OPSEC). These measures include counter surveillance, physical security, signal security, and information security. OPSEC also involves the elimination or control of tactical indicators that can be exploited by the enemy. To provide the most effective OPSEC, you must see the enemy before it sees you. The following measures can be used to provide OPSEC:
•Use hide and defilade positions habitually.
•Position observation posts to observe enemy avenues of approach.
•Camouflage positions, vehicles, and equipment against both visual and infrared detection. Break up silhouettes, reduce glare, and reduce vehicle signatures caused by dust, exhaust smoke, and tracks.
•Reduce infrared and thermal signatures by parking in shadows, turning off engines and heaters, and using terrain masking.
•Maintain noise and light discipline.
•Patrol aggressively to prevent enemy surveillance and to gather information about the enemy.
•Use smoke to screen movement.
•Enforce proper radio operating procedures: authentication, encoding, limiting transmission time, using low power, and tying down antennas.
•Use radio operators trained in antijam, interference, and deception procedures.
•Overwatch friendly barriers and obstacles.
•Maintain contact with adjacent units.
FRATRICIDE PREVENTION (IFF)
The underlying principle of fratricide prevention is simple: Leaders who know where their soldiers are, and where they want them to fire, can keep those soldiers alive to kill the enemy. At the same time, leaders must avoid becoming tentative out of fear of fratricide; rather, they must strive to eliminate the risk through tough, realistic combined arms training in which each soldier and unit achieves the set standard.
Causes
Leaders must identify any factors that may affect their units and then strive to eliminate or correct them. These can include:
•Failure in the direct-fire control plan, especially in designation of target engagement areas.
•Land navigation failures.
•Combat identification failures.
•Inadequate maneuver control measures.
•Reporting and communications failures.
•Weapons errors.
•Battlefield hazards such as unexploded ordnance and unmarked or unrecorded minefields.
•Reliance on instruments and failure to balance technology and basic soldier skills.
Prevention
There are five key principles to fratricide reduction and prevention:
•Identify and assess potential risks.
•Maintain situational understanding.
•Ensure positive target identification.
•Maintain effective fire control.
•Establish a command climate that emphasizes prevention.
FINAL COMBAT INSPECTIONS
Inspections allow leaders to check the unit’s operational readiness. The key goal is to ensure that soldiers, equipment, weapons, and vehicles are fully prepared to execute the upcoming mission. Inspections also contribute to improved unit confidence. Below is a checklist of items to inspect:
FINAL COMBAT INSPECTION CHECKLIST
GO
NO GO
SHOOT
Rifle
__________
__________
Pistol
__________
__________
Crew-served weapons and mounts
__________
__________
Lights
__________
__________
Sights
__________
__________
Night vision goggles (NVG)
__________
__________
Lasers
__________
__________
Ammo/grenades
__________
__________
Maintenance/cleaning
__________
__________
Demo/breaching
__________
__________
MOVE
All SOP/IAD movement techniques
__________
__________
SOP for moving wounded
__________
__________
SOP for moving enemy prisoners of war (EPWs)
__________
__________
Vehicle driver training (day/night)
__________
__________
Vehicle battle drills
__________
__________
Firing weapons from vehicles
__________
__________
Helicopter training (load and offload rehearsals)
__________
__________
Convoy/drivers training
__________
__________
Another mode of infiltration/exfiltration
__________
__________
Batteries, water, fuel, etc.
__________
__________
SOP for all weapons and equipment