Army Update

1
Army Update

• LTC James Persson
• Director, U.S. Army Aeromedical Activity

2
Agenda

• Personnel changes
• Changes to policy letters
• Changes to AR 40-501
• Strategic plans at USAAMA
• Other news

3
Personnel Changes

• Aviation Medicine Propenency Director
• COL McKeon replaced by COL Bernstein
• Director of USAAMA
• COL Bernstein replaced by LTC Persson
• RAM at USAAMA
• COL (ret) McGhee now Chief of Review and
  Disposition
• Recently retired as Commander of USAARL

4
APL Changes

• Aeromedical Technical Bulletins
• OPM standards, info for optometrist on visual
  testing, new tables/charts to reflect updated
  standards
• Aeromedical Policy Letters
• Color vision
• Reflect trend toward Tri-service standards
• Changing cockpits
• Changed cut-off scores
• Need to reassess color vision at comprehensive
  FDMEs

5
Changes to AR 40-501

• Clarification of class 3 standards
• UAS operators
• Updated flight duty health screens
• Changes reference from Commander, US Army
  Aeromedical Center to Director, USAAMA
• Combined class 1 standards
• Previously had class 1A and class 1W FDMEs
• APAs/AMNPs/AMEs can sign upslips

6
Role of Non-FS aeromedical providers

• AR 40-501 change allows APAs to sign upslips and
  submit uncomplicated FDMEs without FS signature
• Based on shortage of flight surgeons and
  increasing number of aeromedical PAs
• Increasing use of PAs as BN surgeons
• 137 active APA accounts
• 1079 active FS accounts
• Operational concerns based on lack of flight
  surgeons
• Trends from USASAM

7
Limitations on New Policy

• Non-FS aeromedical providers can only sign
  uncomplicated FDME
• Complicated vs Uncomplicated
• Deciding factor is the need for submission of an
  aeromedical summary
• Based on role of AERO external user
• Read (administrative, flight ops)
• Read, write (clinic NCOs, previous APA role)
• Read, write, submit (flight surgeon role)
• Read, write, partial submit (new APA role that
  allows submission of FDMEs but not aeromedical
  summaries)

8
Preliminary results

• Compared qualification rates for FS and non-FS
  aeromedical providers for a 6-month period
• Using AERO, compared agreement between providers
  assessment vs. USAAMAs final qualification
• Provider submitting as Qualified
• Final disposition from USAAMA Qualified vs.
  Disqualified

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Preliminary results (cont.)

• 370 flight surgeons
• 34 of total active FS in system
• 93.43 agreement rate
• 51 APAs
• 38 of total APA users
• 93.83 agreement rate
• Will continue to monitor through AERO

10
Strategic Goals

• Continued work with Navy
• Coast Guard adopting AERO
• National Guard Civil Support Teams (CST)
  implementing AERO-lite
• Working with Central Army Flight Record System
  (CAFRS)
• Collaboration with AKO/DKO for FDME readiness
  info
• Red-yellow-green light system on AKO homepage

11
Other stuff

• Collaboration with USAARL regarding C-disc
  implants
• Were moving!
• Physical location
• Command

12
Questions?