A DOD committee formed shortly after Gulf War I to oversee combat trauma surgery programs gathered at Ft. Sam Houston, Tex., last month, to review its set a new agenda. Among accomplishments from its first decade, the group has created joint training standards and an Emergency War Surgery Handbook, as well as establishing partnerships with civilian trauma training centers. Lt. Col. Donald Jenkins, chief of trauma at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland AFB, Tex., says that the Combat Trauma Surgical Committee comprises “high-powered, high ranking, very senior member[s]” that keep their focus on the wounded troop. He called the committee’s efforts “unparalleled.”
President Donald Trump’s nominee for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff touted his highly unusual background for the job as an asset and reaffirmed his commitment to stay apolitical during a confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee on April 1.