BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan -- Craig Joint Theatre Hospital will celebrate the accomplishments of the Air Force Biomedical Service Corps, Jan. 22-26, at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. This corps, whose motto is “United in the Mission,” is one of the most diverse corps in the Air Force.
The BSC, originally established in 1965, was compiled from the Air Force’s Women’s Medical Specialist Corps and parts of the Medical Service Corps. It now encompasses 18 medical specialties, including more than 2,400 officers working alongside 5,800 enlisted Airmen in parallel career fields. Among these are those who directly serve patients, such as physical therapists and physician assistants; as well as those who may not always be seen, but contribute greatly to patient care, such as bioenvironmental engineering, pharmacy, and lab officers.
BSCs work both stateside and overseas, contributing greatly to the medical mission, and nowhere is the mission so critical as in deployed environments. Here at BAF, BSCs are seen not only in the hospital, but also working alongside our sister service counterparts both inside and outside the wire. They provide care, from the emergent to occupational and everything in between; and they also travel throughout the theater ensuring Airmen are safe by providing counseling, surveying workcenters for occupational health hazards and radiation exposures.
“The difference between BSCs and other corps is our technical proficiency, from day one we are expected to serve in dual functions – both administrative and medical,” said Lt. Col. Patrick Kennedy, Senior Biomedical Science Corps executive officer and Diagnostics and Therapeutics Flight commander. “We also have a variety of (Air Force Specialty Codes) that give us a wealth of knowledge to pull from that you may not see in other corps.”
Those included in this corps are physical therapists, optometrists, podiatrists, physician assistants, audiology/speech pathologists, psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists, aerospace physiologists, biomedical scientists, clinical dieticians, bioenvironmental engineers, public health officers, entomologists, pharmacists, medical lab officers, and health physicists.
BSC week will be celebrated across the Air Force in many different ways, from breakfasts and small get-togethers to full scale ceremonies. And though the recognition highlights the accomplishments of this diverse corps during this special, the contributions of those serving as BSCs continues year-round.