August 30, 2011
NAVY ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO PFA & PRIMS, by Lt. j.g. George McElwee
The Navy recently announced changes to its physical fitness assessment (PFA) and web-based reporting application for command fitness leaders (CFL) known as the Physical Readiness Information Management System (PRIMS).
The PFA consists of a medical screening, a body composition assessment (BCA), and a physical readiness test (PRT). Its changes, outlined in OPNAVINST 6110.1J, will affect almost 400,000 Sailors, both active and reserve, enlisted and officer. The most notable one is the decrease in the number of scoring categories in the PRT from twelve to five. Other alterations include a requirement that all Sailors must first complete the medical screening–which involves a health assessment and physical activity questionnaire–before moving forward with the PFA, and the automatic failure of the PFA if the Sailor fails to pass the BCA portion.
The changes to PRIMS will allow a CFL to report and manage PFA data with greater access. The main improvement will enable the CFL to download a PRIMS spreadsheet to their workstation which will allow for population when Internet connectivity is limited. The greatest advantage is for the CFL that is underway or on deployment.
In a recent article on Military.com, Bill Moore, director, Navy Physical Readiness Program said, “PRIMS 2011 was designed with user-friendliness in mind, and incorporates physical readiness program policy changes announced in the past year.”
These changes may seem minor to the individual Sailor, but will have a larger impact on the fleet. The Navy recognizes the importance of a physically fit Sailor to the mission readiness of the fleet. And the changes to the PFA and PRIMS will allow for a streamlined standard and an efficient reporting structure.
Go to page 28 of OPNAVINST 6110.1J to see where you fall in the standards.
