 Command surgeon hosts joint task force medical seminar
U.S. Joint Forces Command's command surgeon hosted the 13th annual Joint Task Force Senior Medical Leader Seminar at the Joint Forces Staff College last week focused on integration and team building in the joint medical environment.
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By Robert Pursell
USJFCOM Public Affairs
(NORFOLK, Va. - Dec.11, 2006) -- U.S. Joint Forces Command's (USJFCOM) command surgeon hosted the 13th annual Joint Task Force Senior Medical Leader Seminar (SMLS) here last week focused on operational health care requirements of the joint task force (JTF).
The seminar, which took place at the Joint Forces Staff College, centered on developing and improving the knowledge and skills required of the JTF surgeon. It stressed integration, teamwork and team building in the joint medical environment.
The purpose of the seminar was to ensure that senior health professional medical executives likely to be designated by their service as a JTF surgeon or staff are prepared for a joint atmosphere.
Rear Adm. Gregory Timberlake, USJFCOM's command surgeon, explained the reason behind the event.
"We've had this increasing emphasis on preparing joint task force headquarters and the medical community grows up in our own service stovepipes. And when we go to a joint task force we have to be sure that we can operate jointly," said Timberlake.
He said there is currently no specific requirement for medical personnel to undergo the kind of joint training that other military communities go through. This was an opportunity to provide senior officers who are coming from a service operational billet and going to a JTF headquarters with the training they will need.
The seminar provided first hand medical expertise and JTF operations to over 70 medical department officers from all branches of military service as well as international officers. All students were hand selected for participation from each service component's surgeon general and were then invited to attend by Timberlake.
"This course evolved to try and give some of that information and background to senior medical department personnel who will possibly be in that position in the future," said Timberlake.
He explained the course covered everything from how attendees have to support the JTF commander for major combat ops to security stabilization transition and reconstruction operation.
The seminar was different from last year's in that senior leaders of JTFs around the globe were brought in to talk about their experience and stress the importance.
"We've brought in medical subject matter experts who have been there," said Timberlake
He said another change was allowing the services to make nominations as to who can attend. They were to pick which attendees had the best chance of being put into a JTF headquarters.
"It's a combination of lectures, group discussions and an exercise on the last day," said Timberlake. "During the exercise the attendees split into eight groups and worked together to go through the different phases of forming a JTF surgeon cell.
Timberlake and his staff also provided templates and reference material for seminar attendees to take with them.
Command officials will start planning next year's event later next spring.
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