Strategic Systems and Future Forces: USU Concludes at 2026 MHS Conference

Uniformed Services University experts close the 2026 MHS Conference by tackling systemic policy gaps, AI integration, and force readiness.

June 2, 2026 by USU News

On Friday, May 29, 2026, Uniformed Services University (USU) faculty and military medicine leaders concluded the final day of the 2026 MHS Conference at the Hyatt Regency Dallas. Shifting the focus toward large-scale structural overhauls, the day's sessions addressed the complex realities of treating the fighting force during combat operations.

Through a lens of force development and readiness, presenters challenged long-held assumptions regarding medical capacity, artificial intelligence, and operational health to champion a unified vision. Guiding this transition are leaders who embody the very pipeline they seek to improve, such as trauma surgeons who seamlessly navigate both the complexities of the surgical bay and the calculated precision of the strategic policy table.

Healing the Front Lines: Rethinking Policy, Planning, and Systems

Addressing the strategic gaps facing the Military Health System (MHS) during potential near-peer conflicts, Dr. Jeff Freeman, Executive Director of the National Institute for Defense Health Cooperation (NIDHC), challenged the assumption that civilian or military networks have the excess capacity to handle mass casualties. Panelists highlighted that the system is wholly unprepared for the sheer volume of trauma that a large-scale conflict would generate.

Experts argued that relying heavily on Congress for statutory fixes is difficult due to fractured committee jurisdictions, necessitating swift executive-level adjustments to optimize casualty reception facilities. True skill sustainment requires deep, embedded partnerships where military clinicians fully rotate on the regular schedule alongside their civilian counterparts rather than just observing.

"We should never fool ourselves into believing that what we can do in ones and twos and tens, that we can do in the 100s. You will quickly see just how big those gaps are when you try to scale or sustain something," noted Freeman.

Innovations in Public Health Education to Support DoW Force Generation

Looking at the integration of generative artificial intelligence in medical education, Lt. Col. Joshua Duncan, assistant dean for Assessment in the USU School of Medicine, and Dr. Kevin Jackson, associate professor in USU's Preventive Medicine and Biostatistics department presented a warning against cognitive deskilling. They analyzed the impact of artificial intelligence through the lens of "evolutionary mismatch," where the human drive to conserve energy naturally clashes with an omnipresent technology that readily automates thinking.

If left unchecked, unmonitored AI use shifts learners from critical evaluation to passive reliance on automation, raising the risk of automation bias where trainees over-trust authoritative outputs, according to the speakers. To maintain a competent human in the loop, educators must adapt their frameworks rather than ban the technology outright. Jackson emphasized that without proper training, having a human in the loop is merely a talking point used to justify employment. They propose strategies like "AI-Last Exercises," forcing students to perform their own clinical reasoning before comparing their findings to AI outputs.

Intelligent Warfare: Leveraging AI for a Smarter, Faster, and Healthier Force

In a broader discussion on advanced analytical tools across garrison and operational medicine, Duncan and a panel of Navy and Defense Health Agency (DHA) experts emphasized how these systems can accelerate medical training and shape force generation. Utilizing adaptive learning platforms, students engage in active learning to master clinical competencies efficiently. Because AI systems currently outperform humans in multiple cognitive tasks, curriculums must proactively upskill the force to thrive in a shifting professional landscape.

"We're getting to the point where it will soon become malpractice to not use these AI tools, which leads to a lot of things that we have to consider, especially in medical education, about our mission being force generation," Duncan stated.

Advancing Military Women's Health: Research, Policy, and Practice

Dr. Lynette Hamlin, Professor and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs at USU's Graduate School of Nursing (GSN), and Dr. Richard Shoge outlined how microscopic, cellular-level research into biological sex differences translates directly to the large-scale lethality of the fighting force. With women comprising roughly 18% of the active-duty military, the need for tailored research into their specific health profiles is urgent, they said.

Hamlin noted that, over the past five years, $9.8 million in USU funding and $62.6 million in DHA funding targeted at critical domains such as musculoskeletal conditions, reproductive health, and mental health trauma. By establishing regular gap analyses, this collaborative approach aims to align academic findings with actionable Department of War (DoW) solutions, prioritizing service women's well-being and mitigating operational health gaps, particularly those caused by traumatic brain injury.

Meeting Military Nursing Needs & Preparing Future Leaders

Preserving the nursing workforce requires an enterprise-level, cross-service approach to combat widespread burnout. Moderated by Dr. Carol Romano, Dean of USU's GSN, this panel addressed the specific struggles branches face in retaining mid-grade officers between their fourth and ninth years of service.

Romano and the panel recommended navigating retention via consolidated special pays, expanding simulation opportunities, and standardizing civilian position descriptions. These vital administrative and clinical evolutions aim to liberate advanced practice nurses from bureaucratic bottlenecks, allowing them to utilize their full clinical scope and ensure care for downrange warfighters.

The Joint Disease Non-Battle Injury System

Capt. Drake Tilley, Director of USU's Infectious Disease Clinical Research Program (IDCRP), alongside DHA leadership, tackled the systemic advancements needed to protect the warfighter from Disease and Non-Battle Injury threats. Drawing on his firsthand experience with respiratory outbreaks aboard Navy vessels, Tilley illustrated the critical need for a nimble, standardized protocol rather than relying on ad-hoc networking.

The panel proposed a strategic vision to transition from siloed, reactionary workflows to a synchronized, cyclical system that rapidly detects, analyzes, and mitigates health threats. This framework effectively translates scientific findings into standardized clinical guidelines, equipping frontline providers with the necessary countermeasures to flatten epidemiological curves and confidently advise commanding officers.

USU Support of DoW Global Health Engagement Advancing Readiness

Deputy Executive Director of NIDHC, Col. Elizabeth Erickson, detailed how Global Health Engagement transitions from a diplomatic tool to a core component of operational readiness. By engaging with partner nations, the DoW builds the necessary conditions to operate effectively in austere environments, establishing trusted relationships that facilitate access during crises.

The NIDHC provides operational reach-back support and acts as a force multiplier for practitioners across all career levels. Erickson noted that starting in October 2026, the institute will launch the Health Security Cooperation Education and Training Program to build partner capacity through mobile training teams and in-residence courses, directly addressing operational challenges and interoperability.

As the 2026 MHS Conference drew to a close, the overarching message from Uniformed Services University leadership was unequivocal: the future of military medicine cannot rely on the assumptions of the past. From completely overhauling trauma networks and embracing artificial intelligence to securing the critical nursing pipeline and expanding global health engagements, the enterprise must proactively adapt to the demands of large-scale combat operations.

By relentlessly pursuing systemic improvements and prioritizing the service members who power the system, USU continues to bridge the gap between academic innovation and frontline readiness. The university stands resolute in its mission to forge a highly capable, modern medical force prepared to save lives and maintain the lethality of the warfighter in any future conflict.