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Heartbeat of the Mission

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Anika K. Jones
  • 386th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

Service members are the mission’s heart, and just like the heart pumping oxygen and blood throughout the body to sustain life, they work diligently to keep the mission alive.  The clinic provides that heartbeat, ensuring the wing has a medically fit force.

The 386th Expeditionary Medical Group’s day-to-day mission is providing first-line, basic outpatient care to the base population.

“We are the installation medical response,” said Col. Jerry Rumbach, 386 EMDG commander. “We provide casualty management, patient reception and evacuation, as well as hazardous materials and chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high-yield explosive response.”

Since members are screened for medical stability prior to deployment, medical care here is geared towards acute problem intervention and solutions.  With anywhere from 150-200 patients seen monthly, the most commonly treated ailments are sports and occupational injuries, sand-related injuries, dehydration and heat stress.

Hydrate, use sun screen, wear eye protection, and don’t overdo it when participating in sports activities said Rumbach.

The 386 EMDG is also strengthening partnerships with coalition forces as well as Air Reserve component units that help in vital ways to accomplish the mission.

“The mixture of patients and providers at the 386 EMDG represent the Total Force concept in action at the highest level,” said Rumbach.

The advantage of building those relationships allows the forces to be able to understand each other’s practices, ask questions, and train side-by-side in the event there is a mass casualty. Through that understanding, service members benefit by having a larger medical force ready to help and heal.

“We see a different way of thinking and solving problems,” said Maj. Joshua Eaton, 386 EMDG chief of medical staff. “Seeing a new and different approach to planning for injuries or mass casualties sheds light on our own practices.”

In an effort to take care of members and send them back in better condition than they arrived, there is a strong focus on preventative medicine with programs such as smoking cessation.

The medical group’s motto is “A great place to get care, and a great place to give care.”  The Marauder medics are dedicated to providing care to the heart of the mission, the people, and ensuring the sustainment of the strongest military force in the world.