Death Can Wait - Competitive Wargame Illustrating Decisionmaking for U.S. Army Field Hospitals, Preparation, Deployment and Relocation, Operations, Fatigue and Morale, Mass Casualty, Combat Lifesaver

Death Can Wait is a competitive wargame designed to illustrate various aspects of a United States Army Field Hospital. The Field Hospital is a fully deployable Role 3 capability that requires planning and preparation to deploy in support of combat operations in an austere environment. This wargame is designed to expose players to aspects of operating a Field Hospital, or to serve as a framework for medical units to improve operations, or train without committing extensive resources. The game can be played solitaire or by up to four individuals or teams. Each player makes decisions for a Field Hospital with five organic detachments capable of providing Role 3 services in an austere environment.This compilation also includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.This thesis is organized into four chapters. The first chapter provides a brief introduction to the topics of both wargaming and Army medical operations. The second chapter provides a review of key literature used to develop this wargame. Chapter three provides both the aspects of the Field Hospital that were identified to be represented in the wargame design and a description of how they were modeled in the game. The fourth chapter is the conclusion of the thesis and includes recommendations for design elements that could be developed in future versions of this game. Appendices A-D contain the game components. Appendix A is the rules, Appendix B is the game board, Appendix C is printable game pieces for the game, and Appendix D is the deployment tracker. Additional game pieces that are not printable (e.g. number and type of dice) are listed in the rules under the components section. The mission for Army medicine is to "conserve the fighting strength." Army medical care is categorized into four Roles, referred to sequentially from one to four. A Role is defined by the capabilities available, type of medical care received, and location on the battlefield. The Roles are arrayed and designed to provide progressive treatment to maximize stabilization and survivability of casualties. Roles 1 and 2 are fully deployable units whose primary purpose is to provide initial triage and lifesaving medical care. A Role 2 facility may be augmented by a Forward Resuscitative and Surgical Team (FRST) to provide resuscitative and damage control care to casualties who are not stable enough to be evacuated to a higher level of care. If a FRST is not collocated with a Role 2, a Role 3 is the first Role of care where casualties receive surgical services.