Aeromedical team teaches Army members patient transport skills

Published Aug. 22, 2013
By Staff Sgt. Stephenie Wade
455th Air Expeditionary Wing, Public Affairs

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan -- Members of the 455th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron taught ten U.S. Army medics patient movement procedures and aircraft loading techniques on Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, August 22, 2013.

Aero medical evacuation is the movement of patients under medical supervision between medical treatment facilities via fixed wing aircraft. In Afghanistan, there are two bases AE crews and their equipment are located, Bagram and Kandahar Airfield. The AE's mission here is to travel all over the Afghanistan to transport coalition and U.S. service members safely and efficiently to the appropriate level of care. But when the fixed wing aircraft lands at its destination, primarily forward operation bases or isolated locations, the medics on the ground get the patients ready for transport and load them onto the aircraft.

"There are certain things the members on the ground need to do to get patients ready for transporting so they can safely be moved out of the AOR to their destination," said Lt. Col. Wendie Skala, 455th EAES chief nurse deployed from Travis Air Force Base, Calif. "The training we provide the Army medics will hopefully increase their knowledge and be disseminated to members on FOB's to help medics prepare the patients for our arrival because time is important in our job."

On an Air Force C-130 five AE crew members went over each of their roles during an AE mission. The medical crew director is the primary aircrew lead and responsible for communication and the mission from start to finish. The flight nurse is in charge of total patient care and management to include their medications and records. The charge medical technician is responsible for team and aircrew management. The secondary medical technician performs patient care formulating care plans. Finally the third medical technician is responsible for baggage and meals.

Knowing the roles is important for the medics on the ground to understand what information is needed and who to provide it to. For example, if a member scheduled to be transported has taken medications, the ground members transporting the member to the aircraft need to bring the medications and its directions.

"It important we train with our comrades because during today's deployments we [U.S. Army] are working more with inter services members and as medics if we don't understand what the AE mission involves then we won't know how to help them when our assistance is needed," said Capt. John Gessault, 101st Sustainment Brigade, Physician Assistant.

Additionally the Army members were taught the proper way to carry a patient litter onto a fixed wing aircraft using a three and four-man carry, and how to load the litter onto the configured stands.

Staff Sgt. Craig Green, 101st SB battalion senior medic and trainee said, "This is the first time in my career of 21 years that I've learned how to load litter patients onto a fixed wing aircraft. As field medics, we usually load onto rotary wing aircraft or trucks. We have patients and are part of Bagram too. So now we will be able to effectively perform the tasks of helping the AE members and our own to get to better care."