TATRC West / SUMMIT Workshop at MMVR Creating Games & Simulations for Learning-One Year Later

1. TATRC West / SUMMIT Workshop at MMVRCreating Games & Simulations for Learning-One Year Later Government Funding Initiatives.....and how to use them David Shorrock MMVR 2006

2. OVERVIEW • Introduction • Topics • One view of the landscape and the opportunity for serious games in the Government Medical Training and Simulation Segment • The challenges faced by the Defense Community in the technology and solutions acquisition process • The contemporary and future operating environment-Afghanistan and Iraq. • Training solutions to the warfighter. • Training Transformation • The process for Broad Agency Agreements (BAA’s), Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR’s) and budgeting for large training system deployments • Future Challenges and Opportunities • A Combat Medic Story

3. THE PLAYING FIELD • Military advocates of Serious Games see this as a positive ”disruptive technology” in the context of a new training solution. Cambridge University Press dictionary definition: disruptive “causing trouble and therefore stopping something from continuing as usual” • Skeptics renew their subscription to the “Flat Earth Society” • The Department of Defense has mandated “Training Transformation”, which seeks to change the way our forces are trained for combat and non-combatant operations; aka “Train as we Fight” Their “Way points for the future”; • Individual Units trained prior to their arrival at the Combatant Command • New Joint Operational Capabilities in a “Future Force” • Real Time Planning and Mission Rehearsal and Situational Awareness

4. THE CONTEMPORARY OPERATING ENVIRONMENT • Defined by the global war on terror and peacekeeping in Afghanistan and Iraq. • For the Combat Medic this “asymmetric warfare” is illustrated by such events as those depicted in “Blackhawk Down”; an example of the “three-block” war and things that can go wrong. There is a training and education impact now, and solutions are needed today • Emergency Medical Aid to Civilians • Army 91W Combat Medics, Navy Corpsmen, Air Force Nurses, Special Operations Forces Para-Rescue and Physicians have to adapt • The Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear or Explosive (CBRNE) threat to all nations • Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Relief (Emergency Services, Police, Guard/Reserve) • Coalition and multi-cultural participation • Examples of the requirements changing: • Consideration of multi-player game technology for team and forward deployed collaborative training and advanced distance learning • Medical Mission Rehearsal-Mission Preparedness • Joint Missions; “train as we fight” now equals joint training. Army 91W schoolhouse will provide joint (multi-service) training • Transition to peacekeeping; civilians and training for IRAQI authorities

5. ACQUISITION CHALLENGES • The training solutions needed today, were not imagined at the beginning of the program budget (POM) and funding cycle • At this time, Program Executive Officers ( PEO’s) have very few budget line items for game-based training, • Today’s recruits, and even seasoned combat medics or pilots, expect this technology to be part of their training • There has been relatively little consideration of the “learning wrapper” in which game technology can be delivered and validated The good news! • The problem is known, and efforts to transform are underway, and can be recognized by the subject matter of R&D requirements in solicitations such as BAA’s (Broad Agency Announcements), SBIR’s (Small Business Innovative Research). There are some “work-arounds”, based on a high priority operational needs statement.

6. BAA, SBIR & PROGRAM PROCESS • BAA • Contract vehicle extends over multiple years • Large budgets >$50m • Large corporations compete • Annual “calls” for topics • Start with a white paper • SBIR • Small Business set-aside • Designed to produce an innovative, marketable product • Low proposal expense (15 pages) • Three phases; $100K+, $500k+ then a commercialization plan (This is a very important evaluation factor) • Large Training System Programs • Example; Army 91W Combat Medic Training Centers for PEOSTRI • Medical component for all Constructive (war-games) simulation • Future Combat System-Embedded Training

7. LINKS TO SOME SBIR AND BAA SITES • Army Research Institute-BAA and SBIR • http://www.rdecom.army.mil/STTC/baa.html • http://www.aro.army.mil/arowash/rt/sbir/sbir_process.htm • United States Air Force-Force Health Protection BAA • http://www.fbo.gov/spg/USAF/DRU/11CONS/BAA%2D06%2D01/listing.html • Office of Naval Research-BAA’s/SBIR’s • http://www.navysbir.com/ • Special Operations Forces • http://www.dodsbir.net/solicitation/sbir061/socom061.htm • Business opportunities US Navy and Army Simulation • http://www.ntsc.navy.mil/EBusiness/BusOps/Acquisitions/Index.cfm?client=NAWCTSD • http://www.fbo.gov/spg/DON/NAVAIR/N61339/N61339%2D06%2DR%2D0003/listing.html • SBIR Home Page • http://www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbir/overview/index.htm • Federal Business Opportunities • http://fedbizopps.gov/ • And many more....... http://www.google.com/

8. WHAT ARE THE OPPORTUNITIES? • ALWAYS LOOK FOR CHANGE! Some current SBIR Topics; • Team Training-Cognitive • Joint Training-Cultural and Situation Awareness • In-theatre sustainment training-Advanced Distance Learning and connectivity to the schoolhouse • Mission rehearsal Some current BAA Topics • Introduction of new treatments/assets for field medicine • Metrics for game technology training solutions • Telemedicine and Advanced Technology • Special Operations Field/Mission Medicine; physiology modeling and triage • CBRNE Emergency Preparedness • Get involved with Government Subject Matter Experts, EARLY

9. FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR GAME TECHNOLGY IN MEDICAL TRAINING • FOCUS ON THE CONTEMPORARY OPERATING ENVIRONMENT • Team/Joint • Distance Learning • Mission Rehearsal • Commercial off-the-shelf Hardware • TRAINING ANALYSIS • Have a clear view of the new technology available, but allow the training objective to determine the solution. Keep game immersion and free-play (fun?) as a viable learning principle • The US Military must have an environment in which to place an instructor or coach (roles to be re-defined) and the tools to enable after-action review • REALISM (clinical integrity) • Put realism where it is has measurable training value. Physiology models can be incorporated into game characters. (Avatars). It does not have to be real, all the time. Depends on the training objective. (Part-task training) • METRICS are essential • Training effectiveness-training transfer • Return on investment in terms of competency, reduced cost, patient safety and outcome

10. A Demonstration of Multi-Player Game Technology To the Secretary of the Army - July 2005 • Demo Showcased STTC Asymmetric Warfare Virtual Training Technology • Cordon and Search Mission • Recent Combat Veterans supported scenario development and participated in the exercise • Active participants: Soldiers and West Point Cadets at STTC, Wounded Soldiers at Walter Reed, Iraqi Role Players,and O/Cs at NTC

11. THE POWER OF SERIOUS GAMES IN A MEDICAL SETTING • Here is the story of a Navy Corpsman, who was a recovering, double amputated, gun-shot wounded survivor of an incident in IRAQ. He was convalescing at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center • He was invited to participate as the combat medic in a Baghdad high-value target re-con patrol, during which a hostage situation resulted in a soldier down. From his wheelchair, he played the role of a combat medic in this virtual training scenario, using multi-player game technology from Forterra Systems • He learned the game and understood the mission in 15 minutes. • His emotional connection to this situation was profound. As a double amputee, he was able to role-play an able-bodied combat medic and “return to duty”. The physcology of this moment was remarkable and is just one manifestation of the powerful potential for game technology in a medical training and therapeutic environment THANKS....QUESTIONS?