JP 3-16, Multinational Operations - Defense Technical Information ...

Chapter III
should be capable of rapid implementation, but at the same time be flexible enough to
manage rapidly changing operational demands.
(12) Every operationally deployed MNF should have a surgeon and/or chief
medical officer who has direct access to the MNFC. Working in coordination with the MNF
staff, they should recommend guidance and/or standards to follow in multinational
operations.
(13) Each deployed national contingent that has health services personnel should
have a single designated individual who has the clinical responsibility for its nation’s health
services matters.
b. Health Services Standards for Multinational Operations. To qualify to
participate in the MNF (and for subsequent multinational resourced medical treatment,
patient movement (PM), and personal disability compensation), national contingents and
individuals allocated or contracted to multinational operations must meet the basic standards
of individual health and physical fitness laid down by the surgeon and/or the staff chief
medical officer.
(1) Contributing nations bear ultimate responsibility for ensuring the provision of
health services to their forces allocated to multinational operations. This may be discharged
in a number of ways, including agreements with other nations or the appropriate
multinational planning staffs and MNFCs.
(2) International and Theater-Level Conventions for the Treatment of the Sick
and Wounded. Health services for operations will comply with provisions of the Geneva
Conventions. Persons, to include detainees, entitled under the terms of the Geneva
Conventions shall, without discrimination, receive medical treatment on the basis of their
clinical needs and the availability of health services resources.
(3) Standards of Health Services. Operational health services to MNFs must
meet standards that are acceptable to all participating nations.
(4) Estimation of Medical Risk. Estimation of medical risk and the associated
casualty rates is the responsibility of the individual nation with health services advice of the
multinational operational staffs. Communication of the health risk is also vital to casualty
prevention, including threat identification, predeployment health briefings, and any medical
follow-up that may be required.
See JP 4-02, Health Services, for further details.
c. PM, known in some nations as a holding policy, balances the treatment capability
available at each role of care against the medical assets required for moving patients. PM is
the act or process of moving a sick, injured, wounded, or other person to obtain medical
and/or dental care or treatment. Functions include medical regulating, patient evacuation,
and en route medical care. Medical staffs face numerous challenges affecting the health of
multinational personnel deployed on operations. Therefore, operational health services
requires clearly defined guidance. Health services plans must be tailored to each operation
III-46 JP 3-16