An Aspen Medical team trains Australian soldiers in battle casualty first aid in the Middle East in 2013. Photo: Aspen Medical.
Canberra-based Aspen Medical has launched a new specialist defence and national security capability.
The company says the new Aspen Medical – Defence and National Security entity marks a significant milestone in its continued growth and long-standing commitment to delivering scalable healthcare solutions for the defence and national security sector.
It says the new division will serve as a Centre of Excellence, combining Aspen Medical’s operational expertise across land, air and maritime domains, with what it describes as cutting-edge healthcare delivery and workforce resilience strategies.
The new capabilities will include garrison and workplace healthcare solutions, training support and capability-building programs, and deployed health services to sustain independent operations for longer.
Aspen Medical already provides support to the Australian Defence Force (ADF) via contracts providing training for the new deployable health capability through Joint Project (JP)2060 Phase 3, which includes biomedical engineering maintenance training, and medical support for field exercises.
Aspen Medical’s new group CEO Craig Fitzgerald said the new capability represented the company’s enduring commitment to those who serve our communities and our nation, at home and abroad.
“With more than two decades of operational experience in regions including Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Iraq, Haiti, Somalia and Ukraine, we are uniquely positioned to support the health and readiness of defence and national security personnel – wherever and whenever they are needed,” he said.
Mr Fitzgerald was announced as the company’s new group CEO in January 2025.
Aspen Medical said the expansion came as Australia faced increasing calls to bolster its readiness and strengthen its sovereign capabilities across multiple sectors. To that end, it says Aspen Medical – Defence and National Security is designed to meet that challenge head-on, delivering Australian-owned and controlled healthcare solutions aligned with national strategic priorities.
The new entity will be led by Al Martin as its inaugural Chief of Defence and National Security. It said Mr Martin brought leadership experience across the military, law enforcement, government, commercial and not-for-profit sectors, and was known for delivering critical health services to the ADF, managing Ebola hospitals in West Africa, and leading COVID-19 response programs.
Mr Martin said the company’s people were “mission critical”.
“We are focused on protecting the health and resilience of those defending national interests – enabling them to succeed, even in the most demanding environments,” he said.
Aspen Medical was founded in 2003 and is a global provider of health services, with offices in Australia, the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and the US. It has operations in 23 countries, including Ukraine. The company specialises in providing health solutions in any setting, particularly those that are remote, challenging or under-resourced.
