332nd Air Expeditionary Wing

Story by Senior Airman Andria Allmond

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq -- In support of Operation Enduring Freedom, the Air Force Theater Hospital platelet apheresis lab here began dispatching blood platelets to Afghanistan Oct. 14, 2009.

"The AFTH has functioned as the sole platelet provider in Iraq. Now, it is the first in theater medical facility to send platelets collected in one operational area to another," said Lt. Col. Thomas Jordan, 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group apheresis chief.

"When I first arrived, I noticed there was a need [for platelets] in Afghanistan," said Jordan, who's deployed here from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas. "Sometimes we collect more platelets then we need to meet the demand in Iraq. Right now we're at 56 to 62 units a week. Since some of those units don't get applied -- and inevitably must be destroyed if not used within their shelf life -- we wanted to figure out a place we could utilize the excess."

Master Sgt. Philip Monk, platelet apheresis laboratory flight chief, said while injuries requiring platelet transfusions have decreased in Iraq, there is still a need for the condensed clotting agent in Afghanistan.

"Our sole purpose here is to provide platelets where they're needed," said the senior NCO deployed from Andrews AFB, Md. "So, we targeted [Afghanistan], and we weren't gonna be stopped. We made sure we got them there."

Jordan and his team ran into a series of challenges getting the platelets to the OEF theater.

"[Platelets] don't like to be above 73 degrees Fahrenheit or they die off," said the lab boss. "So we have to keep them at a certain temperature for the entire life of the platelet. This proved to be a difficulty during flight."

"We found a way to combat this by using a special cooler called a 'Golden-Hour Box.' It [maintains] the correct temperature throughout the flight, which is about four to six hours."

The blood products, which he describes as "persnickety," depend on special appliances to maintain them once they arrive at the Role 3 Multinational Hospital in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Initially, that equipment was not on hand there.

"Right from the beginning, we noticed that even if we got the platelets there, the medical facility in Afghanistan wouldn't be able to sustain them because they didn't have an incubator," Jordan said. "I looked around here and found that we had an [extra] one. So, we figured out a way to get it to Kandahar. They validated the effectiveness of that instrument and then put it into use."

The process has been a joint effort between the Air Force, Army and Navy. While the platelets are collected by the Air Force, the Navy runs the Kandahar hospital and the Army handles the weekly shipments.

Army Sgt. Jason Westlund, a Charlie Co. 7-158 Aviation flight medic who helps transport the boxes of blood products, was excited about the new mission.

"We're here to support warfighters on the front lines," said the Oregon National Guardsman. "And the thought that we may be a part of the process that saves someone's life makes me feel very good about what we're doing here."

Staff Sgt. Michael Hebron, 332nd EMDG NCO in charge, shared similar sentiments.

"This is a proud moment for us here," he said. "We know for a fact that platelets save lives because we've seen it here in Iraq. So, to put it simply, they should have the same effect in Afghanistan, where they are seeing more combat-related injuries now. Every platelet is valuable. Every one of them can save a life."

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