'Golden Medic' training replicates austere conditions

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jeffrey S. Williams
  • Golden Medic Public Affairs
FORT GORDON, GA --  Army Spc. Larry Rogers was on a dawn patrol when his Humvee was hit by an improvised explosive device, embedding two nickel-sized pieces of shrapnel in his left thigh. The Army medic applied direct pressure to stop the bleeding and sent him to the nearest expeditionary hospital for further treatment.

Specialist Rogers, a mannequin, was off-loaded at the field medical tent and brought inside for medical care. To the outside observer, he may be but a doll that could be on display at a local department store; but to the expeditionary medical support team of doctors, nurses and medical personnel here, he was as real as could be for a simulated combat casualty. He was a wounded Soldier in this year's Golden Medic Exercise 2007, the annual Army-Air Force joint medical exercise.

Staff Sgt. Andre Melanson, 752nd Medical Squadron medical administration, March Air Reserve Base, Calif., logged the Soldier into the casualty status listing, filled out the patient record and loaded his information into the patient tracking systems while his vital signs were taken.

"Make sure you apply direct pressure!" shouted Senior Master Sgt. Frederick Baquiran, 349th Medical Squadron, Travis AFB, Calif. "We have a lot of bleeding here."

Staff Sgt. Vicente Rosa, 156th Medical Group emergency room non-commissioned officer in-charge, Puerto Rico Air National Guard, pressed his fingers firmly on the bleeding limb just as Sergeant Baquiran issued his command.

Specialist Rogers was then in triage for X-ray and lab work, and later moved to the operating room where Lt. Col. Eric Ifune, a general surgeon with the 349th Medical Squadron, would perform surgery on him.

For training purposes, Colonel Ifune didn't actually perform surgery, but explained to Capt. Diana Pena, 156th Medical Group critical care nurse, and Army Sgt. Matthew Maress, 801st Combat Support Hospital operating room specialist, Illinois Army National Guard, exactly what needed to be done if Specialist Rogers had been, in fact, a real patient.

"There is an arterial injury in the left leg," said Colonel Ifune. "We need to put in a temporary shunt and perform surgery to relieve the pressure and increase the blood flow. The entire operation, including anesthesia, should only take about an hour."

Upon his release from the operating room, the patient was transferred to the intensive care unit under the care of Maj. Richard Payne, a clinical nurse assigned to the 605th Medical Squadron, Fairchild AFB, Wash.

Major Payne instructed Staff Sgt. Aiman Ahmed, 105th Medical Group medical technician, New York Air National Guard, and Senior Airman Daphne Black, 349th Medical Squadron medical technician, to conduct a circulation and motor sensor test in the Soldier's left leg every 15 minutes.

"He needs to see the vascular surgeon in order to replace the shunt," said Major Payne. "His current shunt is only temporary and needs to be replaced within 24 hours. He'll be airlifted out of here as a priority-1 patient due to the temporary nature of his shunt and the limited time we need to replace it."

"This is the most serious muscular traumatic injury we deal with," he continued. "Our surgeon took good care of him, we gave him intravenous fluids and he seems to have stabilized."

After spending time in intensive care, Specialist Rogers was sent to the ward while awaiting transportation to a better-equipped hospital out of the region.

While Specialist Rogers' wound was not life-threatening, others' were less fortunate. Regardless of the types of injuries, ranging from loss of limb, chest wounds, to traumatic stress, the EMEDS team frequently trained under austere, realistic conditions such as here at Golden Medic to increase the wounded warriors' survivability.

(This article is part one of a three part series.)