Future of readiness: AFMS, partners explore innovative technologies

Published Aug. 26, 2025
Air Force Surgeon General Public Affairs

FALLS CHURCH, Va. -- In a simulated drone-attack scenario at Fort Detrick, Maryland, medics moved quickly - recording vital signs, injuries, and treatments on a tablet before transferring the data with a single scan. The process took seconds, but the implications were far-reaching. In a real mission, that same patient information could follow the wounded from the battlefield, through multiple levels of care, and across thousands of miles to a stateside medical facility - remaining accurate and accessible every step of the way.

While just a simulation, it's a reminder that the readiness demands of tomorrow's battlefield start long before the first call for care. To meet these demands, services need to employ innovative strategies.

For the Air Force Medical Service, that readiness comes from blending research, development, and real-world operational testing - ensuring the tools and the people behind them are prepared for any environment. From mobile applications that maintain patient data throughout the continuum of care to artificial intelligence tools that detect early signs of fatigue or stress, AFMS is investing in systems designed to solve real operational challenges.

Closing the Patient Data Gap: BATDOK and OpMed CDP

Air Force Medical Command’s A5T division, the command’s operational testing arm, led the Fort Detrick demonstration in partnership with the Joint Operational Medicine Information Systems Program Management Office. They showcased the Battlefield Assisted Trauma Distributed Observation Kit and the Operational Medicine Care Delivery Platform - built to capture, transfer, and visualize patient data from the point of injury through the entire continuum of care even in disrupted, disconnected, intermittent, and low-communication environments.

Air Force and Space Force Surgeon General Lt. Gen. John J. DeGoes, Chief Medical Enlisted Leader Chief Master Sgt. James M. Woods, AFMEDCOM Chief of Staff Brig. Gen. Eveline Yao, and Director of Policy and Resources Brig. Gen. Jason Lennen attended the event.

“Credible end-user testing with information systems is key,” said DeGoes, who serves in a dual-hatted role as AFMEDCOM commander. “These tools are purpose-built for interoperability in austere environments.”

Image of Airmen observing and talking together. — Future of readiness: AFMS, partners explore innovative technologies

Lt. Gen. John J. DeGoes, Air Force and Space Force Surgeon General, accesses the Battlefield Assisted Distributed Observation Kit on a designated mobile device to test the application’s user interface in entering patient data during a simulated trauma scenario. The Air Force Medical Command’s operational test division under its Capability Development Directorate, A5T, hosted an Air Force medical leadership site visit to demonstrate technological capabilities for battlefield care at a testing location, Fort Detrick, Maryland, July 24, 2025. (U.S. Air Force photo by Megan Hearst)

During the demonstration, medics used BATDOK, a mobile application developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory, to record patient vitals, injuries, and possible treatments at the point of injury. BATDOK runs on smartphones or tablets, making it accessible and scalable in any environment.

Medics then simulated patient data transfer to the OpMed CDP via QR code. The software is integrated with MHS GENESIS and builds upon the patient data entered on BATDOK, consolidating and visualizing patient data to enhance evacuation planning, clinical decision support, and treatment continuity through guided workflows and Joint Trauma System graphics.

The operational need for such a system is clear. In recent large-scale patient movement exercises, such as Ultimate Caduceus 25, simulated patient arrivals at Travis Air Force Base from the Pacific theater would have been treated at multiple medical facilities along the way. The receiving care teams needed not just the latest data, but a complete medical history across three or four prior facilities. Medical documentation communicates a patient’s treatment plan and progress across multiple care teams. Without consistent records, care slows, coordination suffers, and the value of partner networks is reduced.

Protecting the medic, not just the patient

While BATDOK and OpMed CDP focus on keeping patient information intact from point of injury to recovery, AFMS is also addressing another critical factor: ensuring the medic is just as mission-ready, mentally and physically, as the patient they are treating.

At Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, the 711th Human Performance Wing is developing wearable technology and machine learning algorithms with industry partners to identify physiological and cognitive resilience indicators in Airmen and Guardians.

“We take this data that’s been trained on the general population, then we apply it to some of our operators who are executing 30-plus-hour missions where they need to maintain vigilance and high performance,” explained Dr. Evan Anderson, research psychologist at the 711 HPW.

Projects include a fatigue management advisor and vocal biomarker tools that can flag overtraining or cognitive fatigue, giving commanders and embedded health teams a chance to intervene before performance declines.

Any AI tool intended for use by service members must undergo extensive validation to ensure its outputs are accurate, consistent, and reliable in real-world operational settings. If it cannot meet that standard, it will not be fielded.

“We’re giving people medical guidance on how they should alter their behavior to most effectively execute a mission … we cannot be tolerant of errors or hallucinations in the AI,” said Dr. Logan Williams, Human Performance Product Area Lead at the 711 HPW.

Together, these systems and safeguards ensure that when new technologies reach the field, they are not only advanced but also dependable.

Image of Airmen training — Air Force medical personnel attend to notional patients during Exercise Ultimate Caduceus 2025 at Travis Air Force Base, California, July 28, 2025. (U.S. Air Force photo by Matt Brafman)

Partnerships that build readiness year-round

Even the most advanced systems are only as effective as the medics who use them. Across the Air Force, Reserve, and Air National Guard, medics bring a dual skill set shaped by both military service and extensive civilian medical experience. This combination gives the Total Force a readiness advantage - one built for exercises and deployments, as well as daily clinical care for patients in hospitals, clinics, and trauma centers around the country.

Travis Air Force Base’s David Grant Medical Center is a prominent example of how this model works. Leaders there emphasized that public-private partnerships are more than contingency plans - they are year-round readiness builders. Many Travis-based medics also work in surrounding civilian hospitals, gaining high-volume experience, mastering advanced procedures, and maintaining critical skills that directly translate to operational care.

The value of this approach extends far beyond one facility. From large metropolitan trauma centers to rural emergency departments, active duty, Reserve, and Guard medics treat a broad spectrum of patients and conditions. They bring expertise back into the military environment, ready to adapt it to austere or contested settings. The breadth of their experience - whether it’s stabilizing a polytrauma patient after a highway accident, delivering care in a high-acuity intensive care unit, or managing a complex mental health crisis - strengthens the medical force’s ability to respond to any mission.

Image of cots. — Notional patients lay in gurneys during Exercise Ultimate Caduceus 2025 at Travis Air Force Base, California, July 28, 2025. (U.S. Air Force photo by Matt Brafman)

The medical center’s unique role as an active hospital, training facility, and research hub also means patient care, professional development, and innovation happen simultaneously. Leaders note that skills refined while treating an 85-year-old civilian patient can be the same ones used to stabilize an Airman in crisis. Even better, the programs developed here often transfer back into the private sector, strengthening both the military and civilian communities.

“The civilian sector often moves faster with technological advancements, while the military side emphasizes maintaining critical skills in austere, resource-limited settings,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Angela Murphy, a Reservist with a specialty in emergency nursing. “That contrast has helped me become more adaptable and equipped to find creative solutions in both arenas.”

Readiness built on testing, trust, and Total Force integration

Exercises, technology demonstrations, and daily clinical work all feed into one goal - a medical force that can deliver decisive care under any condition. That capability is built step-by-step by validating new systems in realistic scenarios, refining processes with honest feedback, and sustaining the partnerships that keep skills sharp year-round. AFMS readiness is not an abstract concept; it is measurable in the speed and efficiency of a patient handoff, the clarity of the data received, and the confidence of medics who have trained for the most demanding missions long before they are called to serve.