Photo By Megan Hearst | U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Sean T. Collins, Air Force Medical Command commander,...... read more read more
Part three of a five-part series covering the Air Force Surgeon General’s annual Senior Leadership Workshop. The 2024 theme is: “The Air Force Medical Service at 75 … Mission Ready, Operationally Relevant!”
The U.S. Air Force and Space Force Surgeon General, Lt. Gen. John J. DeGoes, and Chief Master Sgt. James Woods, Medical Enlisted Force and Enlisted Corps Chief, hosted the third day of the Senior Leadership Workshop on Dec. 5, 2024, with the day’s theme focusing on the Air Force Medical Command transition.
Air Force Medical Service and AFMEDCOM leaders shared insights on how the new structure will position the AFMS community to support the Department of the Air Force’s evolving operational requirements. Multiple speakers shared a unified message encouraging the audience to embrace change and the collaborative efforts to help the DAF establish AFMEDCOM while maintaining the safety and reliability of the AFMS community.
Leaders provided updates on the efforts to establish AFMEDCOM while sharing strategies to execute a seamless transition that accounts for maintaining operational readiness, standardized advanced training, improved resource allocation and efficient governance as the command. They described the numerous parallel efforts planners must accomplish for AFMEDCOM to reach it initial operational capability in spring 2025.
The 17th Air Force Surgeon General, Lt. Gen. Paul K. Carlton, and David Bayliss, resource manager for the Air Force Surgeon General who served as the fourth Chief of the Medical Enlisted Force, discussed their efforts to influence organizational initiatives that have become integral to the evolution of joint force medical capabilities.
These initiatives included the development of Critical Care Air Transport Teams and Expeditionary Medical Support, both of which remain critical to providing life-saving support during aeromedical evacuations during contingency operations and humanitarian responses.
With a robust belief in the DAF mission and Air Force core values of integrity and service before self, Carlton and Bayliss highlighted how these have guided their self-initiative to pursue growth and create buy-in for senior leaders in reoptimizing medical readiness efforts.
“Our heritage as Airmen is to constantly seek the best solutions, and not rely on past practices if there are better ones available. Look critically and say, ‘how can we do a better job,’” Carlton said. “Those are your sons and daughters [fighting] in the field.”
Bayliss emphasized the need for continued innovation and evolving with the challenges of Great Power Competition.
“The Air Force has always been the innovators who think outside of the box. I think of EMEDS, MEDEVAC, I think about all the things we have done to multiply joint capabilities,” Bayliss reflected. “We have to get into the discipline of saying this is our new reality and we have to prepare for it. As we evolve into our own Air Force Medical Command … we have the ability to truly show what medics can bring to the table.”
U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Sean T. Collins, AFMEDCOM commander, and Chief Master Sgt. Quami King, AFMEDCOM senior enlisted leader, stressed the importance of approaching the AFMEDCOM transition with confidence and providing operational medical support to the warfighter.
“We have to optimize are warfighting capabilities and performance,” Collins said. “This is about readiness. We need a ready force in every way - including the Total Force. We have to make sure that our environments at home are adequate to fight the fight.”
The AFMS reorganization under AFMEDCOM represents a major shift aimed at enhancing efficiency and readiness across the medical force to ensure that medical operations are resilient, adaptable, and fully integrated into the Department of Air Force’s strategic framework.
U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Eveline Yao, chief of staff, AFMEDCOM, and King, outlined the AFMEDCOM journey from concept to initiation and execution of the organization, highlighting its mission to prepare medics to operate in contested environments.
They explained and addressed questions about the current AFMEDCOM establishment timeline. A significant effort will be the inter-command transfer of DAF medical units under AFMEDCOM after reaching initial operating capability. The ICT sequence is scheduled to begin February 2025, and is a deliberate, conditions-based process in which medics will transfer from major commands into the new AFMEDCOM structure.
Yao clarified that personal actions such as deployments, promotions, and permanent change of stations will continue with minimal disruption as senior leaders act on the credo of “do no harm to medics.”
She stressed the importance of collaboration at all levels and the necessity of feedback from Airmen and Guardians to ensure a seamless AFMEDCOM transition.
“Embracing change is not a choice, it’s a necessity. We can do that by doing it together. It’s going to be challenging and historic,” Yao said. “We can build those collaborative teams so that we all have the same vision … the warfighter is counting on us to take care of them and get them home. They trust us, the nation trusts us, and we cannot let them down.”
AFMEDCOM is not just a new command, it represents a cultural change shaping how medical leaders train, equip, and deploy Air Force medics.
“Everybody here is now part of the AFMEDCOM team,” said Yao. “What we need you to do is go out there and make sure that everyone knows [how they can support] this command. We’re counting on you. We need leaders to lead in times of change.”
U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Daniel Watson, chief of AFMS strategy and capabilities division, presented an overview of the AFMS governance framework, which projects the planning, programming, budgeting, and execution of the AFMEDCOM reorganization. The framework includes four committees with multiple working groups that address gaps and direct these concerns to the surgeon general.
The third day of the annual workshop concluded with another Q&A session led by DeGoes and Woods who addressed questions that ranged from manpower readiness requirements to supporting medical capabilities at military treatment facilities.
| Date Taken: | 12.05.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 12.05.2024 18:15 |
| Story ID: | 486774 |
| Location: | LEESBURG, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 76 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Do no harm to medics: Air force medical leaders discuss AFMS transition, AFMEDCOM at annual workshop, by Maristela Romero, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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