In the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

and other

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

militaries, the Regimental Aid Post (RAP) is a front-line military medical establishment incorporated into an infantry battalion or armoured regiment for the immediate treatment and

triage In medicine, triage (, ; ) is a process by which care providers such as Health professional, medical professionals and those with first aid knowledge determine the order of priority for providing treatment to injured individuals and/or inform th ...

of battlefield casualties. In the US forces, the equivalent is the

Battalion Aid Station {{no footnotes, date=February 2013 In the United States Army and Marine Corps, a battalion aid station is a medical section within a battalion's support company. As such, it is the forwardmost medically staffed treatment location. During peaceti ...

. The term has been used continuously since the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

or earlier. The RAP has traditionally been staffed by the unit's Medical Officer, a Medical NCO, and a small number of medical orderlies. Additionally, units have employed stretcher-bearers, and more recently trained medics, for the evacuation and immediate treatment of battlefield casualties. The RAP has usually been the first stop in the evacuation chain for seriously injured personnel, who are then transported to casualty clearing stations and other larger medical units further to the rear. RAPs are not usually equipped to provide surgical treatment or long-term care.

References

{{Reflist Military medicine in the United Kingdom Military medicine in Australia

See also

References