The exercise took place at the Military Medical Training Centre in the Gäuboden Barracks in Feldkirchen and was conceived within the framework of NATO's Smart Defence (SD) project.”Pooling and Sharing Multinational Medical Treatment Facilities Role-2“The exercise represented the testing ground for a new concept for the deployment of Role-2 field hospitals, which envisages their management through a modular and multinational approach. This approach, in fact, is now considered a necessary and unavoidable requirement for the planning and management of operational support resources. Furthermore, “Vigorous Warrior 13” is preparatory to the “Health Shield 14” exercise, planned for 2014, which will test the results achieved by the Italian-led EU project. Pooling & Sharing Medical Support for Crisis Management Operations, a project that actually foresees the establishment of Multinational Medical Units (MMU). The Air Force participated in the event by fully deploying the “Aeromedical Isolation Team“, which simulated rescue operations for personnel affected by a bacteriological attack. The Team is made up of healthcare and logistical personnel, trained and qualified for this type of intervention, from various Bodies of the Healthcare Service of the Logistics Command, including the Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Rome, the Main Infirmary of Pratica di Mare, the Main Infirmary of Rome and the Main Infirmary of Villafranca. The transport of assets was carried out by the 3rd Wing with the support of the Fiumicino Supply Technical Centre. Coordinated by the“Centre of Excellence for Military Medicine” (MilMedCOE) in Budapest, “Vigorous Warrior 13” saw the participation of more than six hundred military personnel from 11 NATO countries. For this occasion, the participating nations prepared a Medical Treatment Facility (MTF) multimodular Role 2 and exercise scenarios and health emergencies were simulated, testing the cooperative capabilities of all NATO personnel involved. The inherent challenges in managing simulations on such a large scale provided a strong stimulus for the participants. On one hand, individual skills and resources were tested, while on the other, the ability to create a field medical facility with marked flexibility, enabling maximum cooperation between personnel of diverse backgrounds, was assessed. It is noteworthy in this regard that the Italian Air Force personnel achieved a remarkable level of integration, operating synergistically and supporting and encouraging the exchange and sharing of procedures and protocols with the teams from other participating nations.
