279 - Employing Spatiotemporal Data for Disease and Non-Battle Injury Risk Reduction in Deployed Environments

Abstract: Disease and Non-battle Injury (DNBI) has long been the greatest cause of mortality and morbidity for military forces in both Garrison and deployed settings, far exceeding battle-related injury. To maintain optimal readiness, reduction of DNBI is the primary responsibility of Preventive Medicine (PM) officers in the Army. One focus of PM officers is the control of vector-borne disease. To this end, the traditional methods of integrated pest management (IPM) – biological, cultural, mechanical/physical, and chemical controls - are frequently employed. However, access to Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing (RS) data has allowed PM officers to improve targeting of vectors for application of IPM controls while further reducing personnel health risk by working with commanders to select forward operating bases in locations identified as lower risk for disease transmission. This presentation will discuss the use of GIS, RS data, and ecological niche modeling of vector-borne disease by U.S. military forces to improve operational readiness through DNBI risk reduction in deployed environments.