The U.S. military is rethinking its "golden hour" goal for critically injured troops, questioning whether it should spend a little longer evacuating patients to get them to a better hospital, reports Army Times.
"Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been adamant that troops in Afghanistan, where the craggy terrain makes medical evacuations difficult, get help as quickly as those in Iraq. Wounded troops in Iraq generally are reached, stabilized and hospitalized within what medical providers call the "golden hour" — the time it generally takes to deliver care needed to save a person's life.
"But at the base hospital located on what Afghans call the "desert of death," doctors Tuesday told Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Conway that it's better to make sure patients who are wounded in battle zones get the best care possible, rather than be taken to the closest medical facility."
More at Army Times.
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