BACKGROUND

This CPG is meant to provide veterinarians, human healthcare providers, canine handlers and other first responders who treat injured or ill military working dogs (MWDs) with recommendations for documentation that will allow them and subsequent providers along the evacuation chain to optimally manage complex, often unstable casualties.

Trauma documentation within the military trauma system supports optimal patient care and performance improvement. Documentation has continuously increased since the Joint Theater Trauma Registry, now known as the Department of Defense Trauma Registry (DoDTR), was initiated in 2004. In 2017 The U.S. Army Veterinary Corps in collaboration with the JTS developed the Military Working Dog Trauma Registry (MWDTR) to capture trauma data as well as disease and non-battle injury (DNBI) data to improve processes and veterinary medical care across the DoD. As part of its data collection efforts, the MWDTR maintains a registry of trauma and DNBI canine patients. The MWDTR documents the demographics, injuries, treatments, and outcomes data for all canine patients in an operational environment (including combat and training operational environments). Sources of data include, but are not limited to, K9 Tactical Combat Casualty Care (K9TCCC) Cards (DD Form 3073), Canine Treatment and Resuscitation Records (DD Form 3074), electronic Veterinary Health Records (eVHR), and USTRANSCOM Regulating and Command & Control Evacuation System (TRAC2ES) reports.

Accurate documentation improves:

- Trauma readiness
- Treatments
- Outcomes
- Standards for care development
- The evaluation of rescue systems
- Casualty response processes
- Prevention measures
- Resource allocation

At conclusion of care, documentation should be carefully reviewed by the responsible healthcare provider for completeness and detail and then forwarded electronically to the receiving veterinarian, if known, and printed for inclusion into the MWD’s paper record. Documentation must also be emailed to dha.mwdtraumaregistry@health.mil for inclusion into the DoD MWDTR. The subject line should include the document type, MWD name, tattoo number and date of the incident (i.e. Canine Treatment and Resuscitation Record MWD Ayaks L332 16 August 2018). For US Special Operations Command canines, the documentation (DD 3073 and/or DD 3074) will be filled out and returned to the handler or operator. The handler or operator will route the record(s) to their respective veterinarian to be input into the MWDTR and the canine’s eVHR.