Corpsmen learn to save lives

Photo By Staff Sgt. Mel Johnson | A corpsman with Weapons Company, 2nd Medical Battalion, 2nd Marine Division performs combat first aid on a simulated casualty Nov. 30, during the 2nd Marine Division Tactical Combat Casualty Care course. This course gives corpsmen the skills necessary to treat wounded Marines.  

CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, UNITED STATES

12.13.2012

Story by Lance Cpl. Mel Johnson 

II Marine Expeditionary Force   

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Cries for help echoed through the warehouse as the corpsmen moved from one casualty to the next as quickly as they could.

“Hurry up doc, you got people dying over here,” shouted an instructor as the corpsman frantically gathered his supplies and moved to help the next casualty.

After a quick assessment of the simulated casualty, the corpsman rushed to treat the other patients.
Despite the thick layer of fog, ambient noise of gunfire, helicopters and victims, the corpsmen successfully completed the final part of their tactical combat casualty care course.

The Tactical Combat Casualty Care course taught corpsmen the combat first aid needed when tending to wounded Marines in a deployed environment.

“TCCC is designed to sharpen and further advance the skills of junior corpsmen that have never been in a combat situation,” said Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher R. Trimmer, a TCCC instructor with Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division.

During this week-long course, sailors with various companies from 2nd Medical Battalion, 2nd Marine Division learned how to keep casualties alive while waiting for transport to medical care.

“We start with four days of didactic (classroom instruction) and practical application in the classroom,” said Trimmer. “Then we end the class with a training scenario which includes a mass casualty extraction.”

All corpsmen learn basic skills in field med, but TCCC goes more in depth, said Trimmer.

“We try to create the best stress environment for the corpsmen by focusing on the casualty side of it and making it as real as possible,” said Trimmer. “It’s really a class taught for corpsmen by corpsmen.”

Students in the class said that taking TCCC has allowed them to further expand their knowledge of field medicine.

“The training is a great opportunity for us to increase our skills, both as new and experienced corpsmen,” said Petty Officer 3rd Class David Smith, a corpsmen with Weapons Company, 2nd Medical Battalion, 2nd Marine Division.

The course is designed to teach corpsmen to respond quickly, accurately and diagnose the casualty, he added.

“The course taught us the guidelines of combat care but also provided the skills to think independently when treating a casualty,” said Smith a native of Sacrament, Ca.

Though the division-level TCCC course aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune is still relatively new compared to those at Camp Pendleton and on Okinawa, Japan the instructors work hard to ensure the sailors fully understand the importance of the course.

“This is what being a corpsman is all about, not just giving shots and taking temperatures,” said Smith. “This is what really matters because it’s going to save lives.”

• Date Taken: 12.13.2012
• Date Posted: 12.13.2012 10:05
• Story ID: 99236
• Location: CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, US
• Hometown: SACRAMENTO, CA, US