Prolonged Field Care Podcast

In this high-yield episode, Dennis sits down with Dr. Jennifer Gurney, Army trauma/burn surgeon and Chief of the Joint Trauma System. They dive deep into the practical realities of wound management in prolonged field care when evacuation is delayed for hours or days. Dr. Gurney shares hard-earned lessons from years of combat casualty care, including: Why “dilution is the solution to pollution” and...

In this episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis talks with Dr. Ryan Maves (infectious disease physician and retired military ID doc) about one of the biggest silent threats in modern combat casualty care: antimicrobial resistance . From the Acinetobacter outbreaks that hit U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan to the even more extreme resistance patterns Ukrainian forces are facing today...

S-Ketamine is now part of the TCCC pharmacopeia; you'd better understand how to use it. Dennis sits down with Pat — a veteran military anesthetist, former Danish Special Operations medical leader, and decades-long ketamine expert — for a deep dive into S-Ketamine . From its development and real-world use in austere environments (including Afghan war wounded and British Field Hospital MERT ops)...

In this powerful episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with Viktoriia , Chief Medical Officer, responsible for medical care across more than 150 kilometers of active front line. A former OB/GYN who served as a combat medic in 2014–2015 and later on Medevac, Viktoriia shares the raw, real-time evolution of Ukrainian military medicine from outdated Soviet-era training to a ba...

In this episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with Jeff to tackle one of the most time-sensitive and under-appreciated threats in tactical and austere medicine: anoxic brain injury. They break down exactly what it is, how fast it can progress from unnoticed hypoxia to devastating outcomes, and why the MARCH algorithm plus aggressive prevention of secondary injury are your m...

In this episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with Dr. Mike Falk — pediatric ICU physician with multiple deployments to Iraq, Gaza, and Ukraine — for a raw, practical, deep dive into pediatric care when you’re the only asset and evacuation is denied. Most combat medics carry 99% adult gear. Kids still show up. Dr. Falk breaks down the absolute minimalist kit that actually w...

In this deep-dive episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with trauma and critical care surgeon Dr. John McClellan ( University of North Carolina) to cut through the noise on tranexamic acid (TXA) in trauma. They cover the mechanism, who actually needs it, why the dosing shifted from 1g + drip to 2g upfront, pre-hospital decision-making when bleeding is controlled, redosing i...

In this episode of the PFC Podcast, Dennis sits down with David Plaster — former U.S. Army combat nurse, medic, and 68 Delta who has lived and worked in Ukraine since 2012, long before the full-scale invasion. David pulls back the curtain on one of the most remarkable stories in modern tactical medicine: how Ukraine built resilient, dispersed, underground manufacturing networks for hemostatic gauz...

In this episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with trauma surgeon Mark Shapiro for a no-BS masterclass on wound ballistics. They break down why understanding the physics of penetrating and blast trauma matters in austere and combat environments — even when experience makes you cynical. From high-velocity rifle rounds and their massive temporary cavities to the infectious ni...

In this high-signal PFC Podcast episode, Dennis sits down with Dr. John Wightman — former 24th Special Operations Wing Surgeon, emergency physician, and one of the world’s leading experts on blast injuries. Drawing from decades of clinical, combat, and academic experience (including co-authoring a seminal paper on blast injuries just before 9/11 and multiple combat deployments), Dr. Wightman break...

In this episode, Dennis sits down with Reagan Lyon, an Emergency Medicine physician and 17-year Air Force veteran who spent the majority of her career in special operations, including time on Special Operations Surgical Teams. While at the Naval Postgraduate School, Reagan wrote a thesis on one of the hardest problems in military medicine: how do you actually build and sustain indigenous medical n...

In this raw and unflinching episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with Thad Snyder (physician, former medic, and brigade surgeon) to tackle one of the most uncomfortable topics in combat medicine: what happens when resources run out, evacuation timelines collapse, and “doing everything” is no longer possible. Drawing from a 72-page crisis standards of care memo (originally...

In this powerful episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Special Forces Detachment Commander Nate shares his journey from medical novice to building a highly effective team clinic SOP. With only one 18D on the team, Nate realized that top cover and systems thinking were critical for success in austere environments. He discusses creating, testing, and refining a practical clinic layout, the &q...

What happens when a sharp-eyed cruise ship doctor spots a hantavirus amid a sea of hangovers and flu symptoms? In this high-stakes episode of the Prolonged Field Care Podcast, Dennis sits down with Dr. Ryan Maves — combat-experienced infectious disease expert and military medicine veteran — to break down the shocking recent Andes virus outbreak. Far from the next global pandemic, hantaviruses are...

In this hard-hitting episode of the PFC Podcast, Dennis sits down with Doug, a cardiothoracic ICU physician, for a no-fluff deep dive into ACLS with a heavy focus on pulseless VT and VFib in austere, military, and prolonged field care environments. From deciding when CPR is worth it under fire or in a mass casualty scenario, to running a lean team code with minimal personnel, nailing high-quality...

In this no-fluff, high-stakes episode of the PFC Podcast, Dennis sits down with Patrick Liebel - trauma/ICU surgeon to tackle the injury that makes every medic’s stomach drop: penetrating abdominal trauma . When the golden hour stretches into days, evacuation is delayed, and your patient’s belly is a black box of bleeding, contamination, and impending sepsis, what do you actually do ? Patrick deli...

In this episode of the PFC Podcast, Dennis sits down with Kevin — a Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) with deep experience in hospice/oncology floors, Level I trauma ICUs and ERs, military nursing, and years in austere environments, including a Role III in Baghdad. Kevin delivers straight talk on the most overlooked, time-consuming, and life-saving phase of Prolonged Field Care: nursing care . He answers t...

In this high-yield, no-fluff episode, Dennis is joined by Dr. Michael Falk, a pediatric emergency medicine physician, former academic, and combat-experienced relief worker who has run airways in Haiti post-earthquake, Mosul during the ISIS fight, Ukraine, and Gaza. They break down exactly why pediatric airways are a completely different beast in prolonged field care and give you field-proven tacti...

In this high-value episode of the PFC Podcast, Dennis reconnects with Brad for a no-fluff, combat-medic-focused breakdown of fentanyl—the fast, predictable, cardiovascularly stable synthetic opioid that belongs at the front of every aid bag. From its 1950s Belgian lab origins to real-world battlefield use, Brad shares hard-earned lessons on why fentanyl beats morphine and Dilaudid in trauma, how t...

In this must-listen episode, Dennis sits down with Dr. Jon Andrews—former 5th and 20th Group Special Forces medic turned Duke-trained anesthesiologist (pediatric & cardiac fellowships)—to tackle one of the biggest headaches in austere medicine: you have a tiny box of opioids and ketamine, a long mission, and a patient who needs to stay alive AND comfortable. They break down exactly how to stre...

This was my Favorite Presentation from SOMSA '25. Check back for the latest updates from SOMSA '26. In this episode of the PFC Podcast, Victor, a former Ranger medic, shares his experiences and lessons learned from a mass casualty event during a humanitarian mission in Burma. He discusses the historical context of the conflict, the challenges faced in providing medical support, and the innovative...

What happens when the battlefield drops 30 feet underground into a collapsed building, ancient tunnel system, or booby-trapped basement? You don’t just “clear” it — you assess it like a critical trauma patient while everything tries to kill you. In this raw, no-fluff episode, Dennis sits down with Sean McKay — 20+ year veteran of dynamic high-threat rescue, nonlinear physics guy, and the man who t...

If you’ve ever said “We’ll just set up a walking blood bank when we need it,” this episode will make you rethink everything. Dennis and Andrew Fisher drop straight fire on how to actually build, stock, train, and run a real walking blood bank on a FOB, Firebase, or any austere base — not just theory, but the exact steps special operators and conventional medics are using right now to save lives wh...

In this episode of the PFC Podcast , Dennis is joined by Dr. Brigham Au — 10-year orthopedic trauma surgeon, former Parkland trauma faculty, and fellowship-trained at the Florida Orthopaedic Institute — for a no-fluff masterclass on pelvic fractures. From high-energy MVCs and falls to sneaky low-energy geriatric injuries, Dr. Au breaks down exactly what matters in the prehospital/prolonged field c...

“Nothing gets easier in flight.” That single line from today’s guest says it all. Dennis is joined by Rich — SOF medic and flight medicine veteran — for a no-fluff masterclass on preparing patients for rotary-wing, ground, or even submarine evacuation. From rotor wash nightmares to 48-hour critical care handovers, this episode is pure gold for medics who want their patients to survive the bird, no...