106th Medical Group Get Hands-On in Alaska

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, ALASKA-Thirty-four Airmen from the New York Air Nationwide Guard’s 106th Rescue Wing’s Medical Group, received hands-on expertise alongside their Energetic Air Pressure counterparts at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, from Might 1 to Might 15, 2022.

The Airmen traveled from F.S. Gabreski Air Nationwide Guard base in Westhampton Seashore, New York, to coach with the 673rd Medical Group.

It was the 106th Medical Teams first Navy Facility Annual Coaching, or MFAT for brief, for the reason that starting of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The medical Airmen had the chance to hone their abilities with hands-on work through the two-week coaching, stated Lt. Col. Shanjay Shetty, a 106th Medical Group flight surgeon and commander of the joint coaching.

The 106th Medical Group’s bioenvironmental engineering specialists, who’re tasked to scale back well being hazards of the work setting, accomplished store visits, shared and discovered finest practices with the 673rd Medical Group’s bioenvironmental engineering specialists.

The 106th Medical Group’s dental staff Airmen accomplished their administrative duties for the 106th and in addition skilled on the 673rd’s Dental Clinic.

106th flight surgeons skilled hands-on with their Alaskan counterparts in water survival, conduct after seize, and skilled a mid-air refueling.

Lastly, the fight medics, generally known as 4-N’s, accomplished rotations at Elmendorf- Richarson’s hospital. Additionally they skilled with superior medical simulation mannequins in a mock discipline hospital and fight setting.

“Developing right here has been a really productive expertise and really rewarding, each personally and professionally,” Shetty stated. “The 673rd Medical Group has been very supportive in serving to us when it comes to offering affected person care experiences and simulator classes.”

The 673rd Medical Group is without doubt one of the few models which have superior medical simulation mannequins, Shetty defined. They’ve the power to speak, bleed, blink and present respiratory similar to a human affected person, he stated.

The commander of the 106th Medical Group, Lt. Col. Stephen “Doc” Rush desires all medical technicians to get hands-on coaching with these state-of-the artwork coaching aids, stated Main Mark Wilborn, 106th Medical Group readiness officer

“When somebody sees “MED” on the shoulder of an Airman, they’re going to anticipate them to have the ability to assist,” Wilborn stated. “Col. Rush desires everybody who wears that patch to have the power to be an operational discipline medic.”

The fight medics have been anticipated to come across a affected person, assess the accidents, mitigate the danger to the affected person, cease bleeding, deal with secondary wounds, and/or resuscitate the affected person and keep the airway as shortly, and safely, as potential.

Basically, the medics have been anticipated to take a badly injured ‘particular person’ from close to dying to secure and prepared for transport to a secure location or hospital, Shetty defined.

The coaching was actually efficient, stated Airman 1st Class David Mangiameli, one of many medics.

“Coaching on simulation mannequins supplies a chance to refresh our abilities and keep competencies that we might not often encounter,” Mangiameli stated.

“Solely till items of plastic in coaching labs turn out to be sufferers in trauma bays, are you able to totally admire the advantages of being right here,” he added.

The 106th Rescue Wing, based mostly at F.S. Gabreski Air Nationwide Guard Base in Westhampton Seashore, New York, operates and maintains the HC-130J Fight King II search and rescue plane, and the HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopter. The 106th RQW is residence to a particular warfare squadron with pararescuemen and fight rescue officers, specializing in rescue and restoration, and deploys for home and abroad operations. At present the wing additionally helps statewide COVID-19 missions.