SYSTEMS MEDICINE FOR HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT

This edited volume makes the case that a systems approach is needed for long-term spaceflight missions. Due to distance from Earth and the impossibility of resupply or rapid return, these flights will entail unprecedented autonomy on the part of the crew. This autonomy includes the need for local clinical decision support and other assistance with urgent medical concerns. The advantage of a systems approach to medical needs in human spaceflight is that it enables a systematic and repeatable methodology for identifying and developing the individual pieces of the spacecraft systems based on the human system needs that are unique to that problem and environment.

The book begins by introducing a systems basis for thinking about humans in space. It describes existing models and paradigms of systems medicine, as well as the tools and analytical approaches involved. A tantalizing peek at preliminary applications of systems medicine in NASA is provided. As systems in human spaceflight continue to evolve for the foreseeable future, it is argued that a systems approach will help to ensure that the evolution of the relevant sub-systems is centered on optimal human-system function across the unique spaceflight needs of the developing customer base. The discussions on balancing the needs of the mission versus the maintenance of crew health, medical risk and liability for commercial spaceflights, and the need to anticipate what the next medical issues might be, will hopefully leave readers cautiously optimistic about this new frontier of applied science.

Contents:

• Preface
• About the Editors
• Acknowledgement
• An Overview of Habitat Systems Supporting Human Spaceflight (David Klaus)
• Systems Medicine in NASA Medical Operations (Rahul Suresh, Moriah S Thompson)
• Computational Modeling and Systems Medicine (Lauren McIntyre, Jerry Myers, Karen Ong, Dana Levin)
• Operational Paradigms: Low Earth Orbit and Beyond (James Reilly, Daniel M Buckland, Erik Antonsen)
• Aerospace Systems Engineering Development Principles for Health Care Providers (Kerry McGuire, Jon Steller, Sarah Lumpkins, Michael K Krihak, David Hilmers, Dana Levin, Eric Kerstman, Kris Lehnhardt, Ben Easter, Jay Lemery)
• Human-Systems Integration Challenges (Tina Panontin, Megan Parisi, Shu-Chieh Wu, Kaitlin McTigue, Alonso Vera)
• Systems-Based Primary Care as a Paradigm (William S Queale)
• Toward Risk-Informed Decision-Making in Situated Systems Medicine: Metascience for Smart Homes on Earth and in Space (Gary E Riccio)
• Risk and Liability in Systems Medicine for Spaceflight (Ryan Zahalka, Jon Iwry, Erik Antonsen)
• Clinical Decision Support Systems in Spaceflight Operations (Dana Levin, Brian Russell, Scott Campbell)
• Networks and Analytic Approaches (Erik Antonsen, Robert J Reynolds, Jacqueline Charvat, Erin Connell, Kevin Huynh, Ahmed Abukmail)
• Predictive Modeling of Spaceflight Medical Issues (Mark Shelhamer, Robert Reynolds, Erik Antonsen)

Readership: Spaceflight professionals (flight surgeons, mission planners, spacecraft designers). Medical professionals (aeromedical examiners, biomedical engineers, bioanalytics researchers, those interested in systems approaches to medical care). Students interested in space and medicine, at all levels.

'The multiple interacting aspects of human spaceflight make a systems approach essential. A book on this topic will be well received.' - James BestFormer Dean, LKC School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, SingaporeProfessor Emeritus, University of Melbourne, Australia

'The approach to assessing human spaceflight activities as a system is very valuable and will serve medical decision making, risk assessment and planning needs. This is an important and timely contribution to the field.' - Jan StepanekAssociate Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, USA

Key Features:

• First book that covers systems medicine applied to human spaceflight
• Provides an overview of current NASA approaches to astronaut medical care
• Examines the many and varied spaceflight systems that contribute to human health and performance in flight
• Outlines areas where future developments will be critical