This manual, Army Techniques Publication ATP 4-02.2 Medical Evacuation July 2019, provides doctrine and techniques for conducting medical evacuation and medical regulating operations. Medical evacuation encompasses both the evacuation of Soldiers from the point of injury or wounding to a medical treatment facility staffed and equipped to provide essential care in theater and further evacuation from the theater to provide definitive, rehabilitative, and convalescent care in the continental United States and the movement of patients between medical treatment facilities or to staging facilities. Medical evacuation entails the movement of patients on dedicated ground and air ambulances, medically staffed and equipped to provide en route medical care; supports the military health system; and links the continuum of care. In addition, it discusses the difference between medical evacuation and casualty evacuation as well as coordination requirements for and the use of nonmedical transportation assets to accomplish the casualty evacuation mission.
The principal audience for this publication is all commanders and their staffs, command surgeons, Army health systems planners, Army Medical Department personnel and units involved in medical evacuation operations.
The Army Health System is a complex system of interrelated and interdependent systems which provides a continuum of medical treatment from the point of injury or wounding through successive roles of medical care to definitive, rehabilitative, and convalescent care in the continental United States, as required. Medical evacuation is the system which provides the vital linkage between the roles of care necessary to sustain the patient during transport. This is accomplished by providing en route medical care and emergency medical intervention, if required, to enhance the individual's prognosis and reduce long-term disability.
Army Techniques Publication 4-02.2 contains six chapters and four appendices as follows:
Chapter 1 provides an overview of Army Health System and how medical evacuation relates to the principles of the Army Health System. It discusses the purpose, primary tasks, and attributes of the Army medical evacuation system. It also defines the differences between medical evacuation and casualty evacuation.
Chapter 2 discusses the employment of medical evacuation resources and the coordination and synchronization required to effectively execute medical evacuation operations. This includes the medical evacuation request process, consideration for evacuation missions, support planning considerations, and evacuation in specific environments.
Chapter 3 describes the mission, function and capabilities of medical evacuation units and elements as specified in the unit's table of organization and equipment. It also discusses the mission command headquarters to which they are assigned.
Chapter 4 discusses the factors that establish the evacuation policy and the impact of the evacuation policy on Army Health System support.
Chapter 5 provides insight and considerations into developing the operational and tactical medical evacuation plan that supports the combatant commander's mission.
Chapter 6 describes the medical regulating system designed to ensure the efficient and safe movement of regulated patients to the appropriate military treatment facility by the most effective means. It also discusses the multi-Service responsibility and assets used to conduct this mission.
Appendix A provides a summary of the Geneva Conventions and The Law of War.
Appendix B provides an example of a medical evacuation plan as part of an operations order.
Appendix C provides an example of the 9-line medical evacuation request format.
Appendix D provides examples of medical evacuation during operations to shape, prevent, large-scale combat operations, and to consolidate gains.
Based on doctrinal changes, terms for which Army Techniques Publication 4-02.2 is the proponent have been added for the purposes of this publication. The glossary contains acronyms and defined terms.