...definitely hampered his ability to treat the wounded.
Such testimony should not have been persuasive, it would be interesting to learn what was revealed on cross examination. The effect of the hampering may have been that this surgeon had to work a bit harder or resort to typical wound treatment.
The question is whether there was a measurable reduction in the quality of medical services the replacement surgeon provided or whether there was any unnecessary pain and suffering by the wounded. Surgeons and medical stations are well trained to provide wound treatment in the absence of the patient’s medical records.
Kind of hard on the unit he abandoned and the officer that had to go in his place, don't you think.
And were you aware, as it came out at his court martial, that as Lakin was refusing to deploy as ordered, he requested that he be allowed to take his pre-deployment leave? And he took it?
Such testimony should not have been persuasive, it would be interesting to learn what was revealed on cross examination.
Why not? Especially since the officer in question had to deploy on short notice without the required pre-deployment training? As for cross examination, Lakin's attorney tried to paint the experience as 'career enhancing' for Major Dobson.
The question is whether there was a measurable reduction in the quality of medical services the replacement surgeon provided or whether there was any unnecessary pain and suffering by the wounded. Surgeons and medical stations are well trained to provide wound treatment in the absence of the patient’s medical records.
I'll quote from the transcript and let you decide:
"When he arrived in Afghanistan, his unit was on the Pakistani border in Kunar Province, just north of Jalalabad. The previous unit had left a physician’s assistant behind to fill the gap when the 1-32 arrived without a doctor. MAJ Dobson testified, “She was very happy to see me.”"
"Then came the most powerful testimony of the court-martial. On MAJ Dobson’s second day in country, his unit “had mass casualties” — a total of 16. He testified that he felt he didn’t treat them as well as he could have had he had more time to prepare for his deployment."
So Lakin left the 1-32 Cavalry Squadron in the lurch. They deployed without a doctor because of Lakin's actions. His replacement had to deploy on short notice without without the training that pre-deploying doctors normally receive. And had his arrival been delayed by 72 hours then the unit would have undergone a major attack with no doctor at all. All because Lakin refused to obey the lawful orders of his superior officers.