Posted on 08/03/2005 4:25:38 PM PDT by SandRat
The clinic serves as a battalion aid station and also provides lab, dental, x-ray and trauma services.
TAJI, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2005 — "You never know what is going to roll up to the door," said U.S. Army Capt. Jacqueline L. Graul, brigade nurse for 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division.
Graul is part of the staff at "Cobra" Clinic, run by C Company, 125th Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, which provides for the medical needs of soldiers at Camp Taji.
"You don't get a second chance with a real casualty. All your training is on the line."
U.S. Army Capt. Jacqueline L. Graul
The clinic has a very diverse mission. The staff conducts morning and evening sick calls; supports explosive ordnance teams and provides medics at the battalion and company levels within the brigade, according to Capt. Michelle L. Auck, a physician's assistant for C Company from Bowling Green, Ohio. It provides all the services of a battalion aid station plus lab, dental, x-ray and trauma services, said Capt. Peter A. Ramos, commander of C Company from Fort Riley, Kan.
The clinic is equipped with a trauma room, which can be set up quickly to treat emergency cases, and examination rooms used for private patient consultation and routine medical examinations.
“The bulk of our mission has been sick call,” he said. “We have had some trauma. Thankfully, it hasn’t been much.”
One trauma episode recently put the soldiers at the clinic to the test, when they treated and stabilized three soldiers injured in a bomb blast on the afternoon of July 8. The staff was training for the same kind of incident that morning.
The shift from everyday troop medical clinic duties to trauma care happened quickly as the medical providers put their training into action.
"It was an adrenaline rush," Auck said. "All the training came together, and everybody knew what they were doing."
"With everyday sick call, it isn't as intense, " said Sgt. 1st Class Delores A. Livingston, noncommissioned officer in charge at Cobra Clinic and a Charleston, Mo., native. "With trauma, we go head-to-toe with each patient. (The medics) didn't leave anything undone. Everybody double-checked everybody else."
When trauma cases come in, teams are assigned to deal with each patient. The members of the teams have specific responsibilities during treatment and stabilization.
"Everybody on the trauma team has a role and prepares in advance of the casualty" said Dr. (Maj.) Gregory Martin, a San Antonio, Texas resident and clinic physician for C Company.
Martin explained that one medic is in charge of giving the casualty oxygen and stabilizing the head, another cuts off clothing over wounds and looks for extremity injuries, and a third monitors vital signs, while the physician does an overall assessment of the patient.
Once the trauma teams go to work, they are all business.
"You don't get a second chance with a real casualty," said Graul, a veteran of Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. "All your training is on the line."
"There is a change in mood in the clinic when multiple trauma cases come in," Martin said. "Everybody feels a little anxious, but we use that anxiety to help us focus."
That focus paid off for the wounded soldiers on July 8. They were successfully treated, stabilized and sent to a medical facility in Balad for further treatment.
After the event, the staff gathered to reflect and review things they did well and highlight areas that needed to be improved.
Ramos said this meeting gave the medical practitioners a chance to talk in detail about how to improve certain procedures and practices. It also gave everyone involved a forum to talk about how they felt about the experience.
"It helped us learn to work with each other," Auck said. "You can always learn from each one of these."
"I think the teams did wonderfully. You never know until mass casualties happen how people are going to react," Graul said. "It's a defining moment."
1st Armored Division PING!
Graul is part of the staff at "Cobra" Clinic, run by C Company, 125th Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, which provides for the medical needs of soldiers at Camp Taji.
"You don't get a second chance with a real casualty. All your training is on the line."
BTTT!!!!!!!
Being Ever vigilant ~ Bump!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.