Troops that are deployed around the globe are already putting a lot on the line — time with their families, their safety, and their health. Without realizing it, many of our men and women in uniform come in contact with life-threatening diseases while deployed, and they may suffer worse outcomes due to limited resources at field healthcare facilities.
Find out why our military members struggle with infection prevention and what we can do to improve health for our troops abroad.
Why are deployed troops more vulnerable to disease?
While our troops are overseas, one third of them will contract an infectious disease — not surprising given some of the conditions on base.
High Stress Environment
Strenuous conditions (like living in a war zone) can weaken your immune system, making soldiers much more vulnerable when they come in contact with germs. Also, in these heightened mental states, it’s easy to focus on the mission at hand rather than infection prevention measures. If you’re under attack, you’re probably not going to stop to wash your hands after sneezing.
Close Quarters
The conditions of barrack life also create an ideal environment for infections to spread quickly through a unit. Soldiers are sharing living spaces, bathrooms, showers, and changing areas that often harbor common bacteria, viruses, fungi, and molds. Even the floors they walk on can be a breeding ground for germs.
Environmental Factors
Deployed environments may expose troops to unfamiliar pathogens, vectors (like mosquitoes), and extreme weather conditions that can affect their susceptibility to infections.
What infection prevention challenges are deployed troops facing?
It’s not just that military members are at higher risk for contracting diseases — they also struggle with barriers to improving infection prevention. The chaotic nature of being deployed makes it hard to adhere to sanitizing protocols and properly use PPE that would prevent disease transmission.
Logistical Challenges
Ensuring that troops have access to vaccines, timely medical care, and treatments can be held back due to logistical constraints, such as supply chain issues or transportation difficulties. Things get even trickier when supply lines are interrupted by active combat.
Limited Access to Medical Supplies
In many deployed settings, especially in remote or austere environments, access to medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) can be limited. This includes items like hand sanitizers, disinfectants, and basic medical supplies.
Inadequate Sanitation and Hygiene Facilities
Field conditions often lack proper sanitation infrastructure. Access to clean water, reliable waste disposal, and effective hygiene facilities can be restricted, making it difficult to maintain cleanliness and prevent infections. There often aren’t simple, efficient ways to sanitize the shared spaces as frequently as necessary.
Communication Barriers
Effective infection prevention relies on clear and consistent communication about risks and preventive measures. In a deployed setting, frequently changing medical teams and units hinder the ability to create a cohesive infection prevention strategy. Incoming troops may also not get a chance to learn about best practices before they get sick.
Rising Antibiotic Resistance
Antibiotics have been our go-to cure for bacterial infections for nearly a century, but their efficacy is diminishing due to growing antibiotic resistance. While deployed, soldiers prescribed antibiotics for an infection may miss doses or leave the course of treatment incomplete because of the busy and often tumultuous conditions of being deployed.
What are the risks?
We’re already asking a lot of our deployed troops — so we shouldn’t also put them at risk of a life-threatening disease. There are a number of severe illnesses that could put soldiers in harm’s way:
- MRSA
- Staph Infections
- Influenza
- COVID-19
- C. Difficile
We need a way to take on these diseases, without adding to the already full plate of our deployed medical teams. The answer? Sanitizing solutions that are completely hands-off, highly effective, and safe for use on tactical gear.
Decon Zone by Global Ozone is an all-in-one solution to sanitizing supplies for deployed military quickly, so they can focus on the mission at hand. Whether you need to sanitize protective gear or just towels for your base, we can provide complete disinfection in just 32 minutes.
Looking to tackle larger targets? Our Eliminator product can sanitize entire rooms up to 2,000 square feet, making it easy to kill germs lurking in shared restrooms, on floors, and in lockers. All of this is possible with the power of ozone — a naturally-occurring gas with stronger antimicrobial properties than bleach.
Want to find out more about ozone disinfection and how we protect our military from the threat of disease? Reach out to us today for a quote.
