A Message from the Director
December 31, 2018 | Download PDF
COL Gina E. Adam, Director, TATRC“Change is the only constant in life.”
- Heraclitus of Ephesus, circa 500 BC
I suppose the Greeks figured it out a long time ago, so it should not surprise us how much change we are faced with on a daily basis. TATRC has certainly experienced a vast amount of change over the past year: in its leadership, its focus, and even its command! Still, the men and women who make up TATRC have accepted, adapted to, and continue to overcome the challenges that change presents to us. It’s been my honor to become a part of this fine organization over the past eight months. I’m humbled by the experience that exists here, the novelty and creativity of the projects that we undertake, and the dedication and professionalism of our staff. I learn something new about TATRC and our research space every day! To highlight, I’d like to review a few of our changes, and accomplishments, over the past year:
- We experienced tremendous turnover in our leadership team: COL Kral’s departure in the spring, Mr. McCarthy’s tenure as acting director through the summer, new Director and Deputy Director in the past eight months.
- We’ve had new research portfolios develop following alignment with the Medical Assist Support Technologies (MAST) Portfolio which created the two new capability areas of Medical Robotic and Autonomous Systems (MedRAS) and Virtual Health (VH).
- We completed the Linked Problem List and successfully transitioned it to DMIX.
- We completed the Team Fitness Tracker protocol, which continues to generate interest in this technology.
- We developed five new mathematical models that help minimize the risk of stress-fracture injury, understand blood-clot formation during the lethal triad of trauma, identify genetic factors that impact psychiatric illness and increase our ability to identify those susceptible to such disorders, and enhance the efficacy of vaccine regimens.
- We developed and validated an optimization algorithm that determines when and how much caffeine to consume to maximize Soldier alertness at the desired time of day, for the desired duration. In the midst of re-vamping the AAMTI Proposal Submission System, the program supported projects that produced 4 pending patents and one investigator that won 2nd place in the Young Investigator’s Award at MHSRS. An e-book for our successful AAMTI portfolio is now available at https://tatrc.amedd.army.mil/AAMTI/.
- The RIF program has taken off! It is now funding $2 million worth of ground breaking efforts such as using a mobile application with thermal scanning to identify adequacy of tourniquet placement, an alternative treatment for tension pneumothorax, and the feasibility of utilizing night vision googles in black-out conditions to complete surgical procedures!
- We launched the Telehealth 2.0 research pilot, allowing BH providers from their MTF desktop computer to have a secure VTC connection to their established patients using the patient’s personal mobile device.
- And, we’ve published 27 manuscripts in peer reviewed literature, presented work at 14 conferences, and participated in over 18 wargames and 2 strategic mapping exercises.
Gina E. Adam
COL, MS
This article was published in the July 2019 issue of the TATRC Times.