Survey of astronaut opinions on medical crewmembers for a mission to Mars

A survey was submitted to all active members of the US Astronaut Corps to determine their opinions on the need for and qualifications of a crew medical officer (CMO) for a mission to Mars. The majority of respondents felt that health problems will occur during such a mission and that if there are more than four crewmembers, a physician should be included. Responses favored a physician with 4–6 years clinical experience, and a second CMO with paramedic-level training. Extensive training in emergency medicine, aerospace medicine, and internal medicine was considered desirable for a physician CMO, with more limited training in surgery, psychiatry, gynecology, dentistry, and other fields, as well as training in space analog environments on Earth. The astronauts felt that a physician would spend most of the his/her time, both during training and during the mission, in non-medical duties and must be fully capable of contributing other essential skills to the team.