The Critical Missing Piece: Investing in Military Healthcare Simulation Professionals for Enhanced Readiness

The use of simulation in military medicine has become a cornerstone for enhancing readiness, enabling health professional education and training, mitigating skills loss, and supporting quality and safety. However, the specialized workforce of healthcare simulationists who design and implement these simulations is largely underrecognized, lacking formal career pathways and structured professional development. In this article, we summarize the extensive contributions of simulationists to military medicine and call attention to the persistent barriers to their professional growth, including fragmented training, inconsistent entry requirements, and varied professional backgrounds. To address these challenges, we advocate for a deliberate, system-wide effort to set baseline qualifications, evaluate and identify gaps in Military Health System education and training, establish career pathways, and engage key stakeholders to advance the professionalization of simulationists. These steps are necessary to strengthen both the profession of healthcare simulation and its broader impact on military medicine.