Scenario-Based Projections of Wounded-in-Action Patient Condition Code Distributions

Abstract : Modeling and simulation applications require accurate estimations of the number and type of injuries and illnesses. These estimates, called patient streams, include projections of the patient condition (PC) code frequencies needed for estimating medical resources for various types of military operations. They are the diagnostic nomenclature that modeling and simulation applications use. Currently, no quantitative process has been developed to estimate these patient streams. The objective of this research was to develop a methodology that links hospitalization data to the PC code nomenclature. Two approaches to estimate PC code patient streams were addressed. The first approach linked trauma and anatomical location percentages to PC codes for selected operations. In the second approach patient streams were estimated from the traumas resulting from the causative agents expected to be used by enemy forces. Data spanning from the Vietnam operation to Operation Iraqi Freedom were used in deriving the patient streams for both approaches. Finally, the Patient Condition Occurrence Frequency (PCOF) tool was developed using both quantitative approaches to easily calculate various patient streams that can then be incorporated into planning and logistics models, such as the Medical Analysis Tool (MAT) and the Tactical Medical Logistics planning tool (TML+).