Photo By Staff Sgt. Nate Hauser | The sailors of Forward Resuscitative Surgical System and Shock Trauma Platoon,...... read more read more
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VAZIANI TRAINING AREA, Georgia - The sailors of Forward Resuscitative Surgical System and Shock Trauma Platoon, Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Black Sea Rotational Force, began Exercise Agile Spirit with a kinetic display of life saving skills and critical care on Vaziani Training Area in Georgia, March 12.
During a mock casualty evacuation drill sailors of the FRSS/STP demonstrated their ability to save lives while operating in an often changing venue and under the demanding time constraints encountered during field and humanitarian assistance operations.
“What used to be the golden hour we’ve reduced to 20 minutes,” said Hospital Corpsman First Class Ehrin Lietz of Normal, Ill. “[We] can launch the patient to Landstuhl [US Army Regional Medical Center] in under six hours,” he added.
The golden hour is a medical term used to describe the critical first hour of care after sustaining a life-threatening injury.
Lietz continued, “The FRSS/STP brings the capability to assess, treat and operate on casualties while in a field environment, maximizing the patient survival rate by ensuring they are cared for in the critical first hour of an injury threatening life or limb.”
The FRSS/STP has multiple medical officers including surgeons, an anesthetist, a critical care nurse and a supporting staff of more than 25 enlisted corpsman. Despite the large amount of personnel and sophisticated medical equipment the FRSS/STP is fully mobile and field expedient.
“Our role is not to provide definitive surgical care but to temporize the life [or] limb threatening process long enough to evacuate the service member to a definitive care facility,” said Cmdr. Jonathan Kuehne, a surgeon with the FRSS/STP.
When asked about the capabilities of the FRSS/STP Kuehne went on to say, “We can do anything from a stubbed toe to penetrating cardiac trauma.”
The FRSS/STP is capable of performing 18 major surgeries in 72 hours without resupply.
During the exercise two Marines were designated as simulated casualties. The Marines were treated by line corpsman then transported via ambulance from the live-fire range to the FRSS/STP.
One of the simulated wounds included a small arms gunshot wound to the groin, which resulted in a severed femoral artery. After a thorough assessment by the BAS it was decided the gunshot wound would require surgery. The STP team leader, Hospital Corpsman Second Class Vincent Undis of Minneapolis Minn., led the litter team in moving the patient to the operating room.
“We are very energetic in our duties,” said Undis. “In this environment it’s all about teamwork and keeping the Marines alive.”
Once in the operating room the simulated casualty was turned over to the doctors and anesthetist for immediate surgery, ending the casualty evacuation drill.
“Our primary mission is to take care of Marine casualties by performing life saving surgery,” said Capt. Jim Flood, an anesthetist and the officer in charge of the FRSS/STP.
“The lessons learned [in field medical surgery] while in Iraq and Afghanistan have changed the game,” said Flood. “We are here to ensure those lessons help save Marines.”
| Date Taken: | 03.12.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 03.30.2012 08:14 |
| Story ID: | 86005 |
| Location: | VAZIANI TRAINING AREA, GE |
| Hometown: | MINNEAPOLIS, MN, US |
| Hometown: | NORMAL, IL, US |
| Web Views: | 164 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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