ASPEN Medical Group have a nice website outlining their provision of health support to our deployed forces.
It can be found here for East Timor and here for the Solomon Islands.
Providing civilian health support to armed troops on operations is clearly inappropriate and speaks volumes as to the lack of care by the senior leadership and the CDF of the ADF for Australian troops. Civilians are limited to working only in areas in which it is safe for them to do so.
The irony is that the civilian health support cannot provide health care when they most need to, at conflict sites. While Australian troops are taking injuries, civilian doctors and nurses who are not trained, armed or equipped for combat cannot be expected to enter a dangerous area to assess, treat and transport injured troops.
Uniformed Medical and Nursing Officers are trained, armed and equipped to provide health care in combat situations. It is a pity the ADF cannot address the toxic culture of discrimination directed towards their health professionals in order to retain their services.
Dr Julian Fidge
