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Rapid development of land-based units in Operation Desert Shield/Storm presented critical needs for medical support. Integration of small Navy mobile medical teams in Bahrain and a larger United States Army Hospital unit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at host nation hospitals presented an innovative method of providing this support. The success of these ventures in convenience and quality of care establishes the host nation interaction with military medical professionals as a workable, satisfying, and important adjunct to standard military medical care.

This paper describes how the King Fahad National Guard Hospital in Riyadh, The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, integrated United States Army (USA) medical units and prepared the hospital to receive war casualties during Operation Desert Storm. In particular, preparation of the hospital, the staff, and military systems are reviewed. The report will also discuss operations at the hospital during Operation Desert Storm and the major lessons learned. Comment is provided by the host nation hospital regarding the impact of the experience with the USA medical units and their personnel.