Your WEM Fortnightly Round-Up

Research Paper

Lessons from a Hantavirus Outbreak in Argentina

Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine examining the 2018-2019 Andes hantavirus outbreak in Argentina highlights the role of super-spreader events and person-to-person transmission in driving infection chains.

The findings reinforce the importance of rapid outbreak response, quarantine protocols, and operational preparedness in remote environments where healthcare infrastructure and evacuation options may already be limited.

Read Paper

Operational Medicine

Why Prolonged Casualty Care Is Reshaping Operational Medicine

In June 2026, members of the World Extreme Medicine Fund team (In partnership with the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education’s Center for Global Health and Operational Medicine) will join military medical personnel and multinational healthcare units in Estonia for NATO Vigorous Warrior Exercise 2026, the alliance’s largest military medical exercise.

The exercise comes at a time when delayed evacuation, degraded infrastructure, and contested environments are forcing clinicians to manage critically injured patients for prolonged periods in austere settings.

Learn More About NATO EVW

Discover PCC Course

WEM Faculty Story

From Homelessness to Humanitarian Nursing in Lebanon

A new story from UK-Med highlights the journey of WEM faculty member Gemma Aldridge, whose path from homelessness and instability in the UK to humanitarian deployments in Lebanon, Ukraine, and Calais reflects the resilience often found within operational healthcare environments.

Gemma completed the MSc in Extreme Medicine at the University of Exeter in collaboration with World Extreme Medicine, before going on to work across expedition and humanitarian medicine settings.

Read Gem’s Story

Leadership & Human Performance

Decision-Making Under Pressure

Huge congratulations to Nikki McLeary and David Atkinson on their appointment as Senior Research Fellows with the British Army’s Centre for Army Leadership.

Their work across human performance, operational readiness, leadership, judgement, and decision-making under uncertainty connects strongly with the realities of extreme medicine, where technical ability must be supported by communication, resilience, team cohesion, and human factors.

We’re also proud to see this connection within the wider WEM community through WEM faculty member Ryan Atkinson, who described the moment as “his worlds colliding”.

Congratulate Nikki and David

Space Medicine

Why Space Medicine Forces Medicine to Evolve

A new World Extreme Medicine interview with astronaut and physician Mike Barratt explores how space medicine challenges many of the assumptions traditional healthcare systems rely on.

Drawing on more than 400 days aboard the International Space Station, Mike discusses microgravity, evacuation uncertainty, limited resources, delayed support, and the operational constraints of practising medicine beyond Earth.

Watch the Q&A

Discover the Course