Also known as a unit crest or DUI, a Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1,
Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e),
"Beret" and
"Garrison Cap," respectively.
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The 32nd Medical Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia was originally approved for the 32nd Medical Unit (Supply, Optical and Maintenance) on 13 October 1981. It was redesignated for the 32nd Medical Battalion on 21 September 1992 with a revised description and symbolism.
The white disc and pointed maroon device display the colors associated with the Army Medical Department, with the red cross a longtime symbol of medical aid and assistance. A point at the base of the cross is used in heraldry to denote a cross embedded into the ground during Medieval battles to indicate aid stations; it is colored maroon to denote aid and stability and together with the cross stands for the function involved in the unit’s mission.
The round white disc is an allusion to mobility, and the five-pointed star represents the battle honors the parent unit earned in World War (Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe). Red from the cross also recalls the two Meritorious Unit Commendations the unit earned for service in Vietnam. The blue four-pointed star and four arms of the cross are visual references to 44th Medical Brigade, and the color combination of red-white-blue is an allusion to the XVIII Airborne Corps in the unit’s World War II lineage.
In addition to its service in World War II and Vietnam, earlier iterations of the 32nd Medical Battalion served in Operations Urgent Fury (Grenada), Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and Restore Hope (Somalia, for which it was awarded a Joint Meritorious Unit Citation). It also provided humanitarian relief following Hurricane Andrew and in Bosnia and Kosovo in the 2000-2001 time period, adding existential meaning to the motto "Support For Life."
The 32nd Medical Battalion was inactivated in February 2008 in a ceremony held at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.