Photo By Tech. Sgt. Brittany Chase | U.S. Air Force Special Agent Christopher Hannah, Air Force Office of Special...... read more read more
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JAFFNA, Sri Lanka--During Pacific Angel 16-3, members of the U.S. Air Force exchanged knowledge and skills with military and civilian personnel from Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bangladesh Aug. 15 through 20.
The combined military-to-military subject matter expert exchange (SMEE) training covered a range of theoretical as well as practical applications relating to crowd control, physical therapy, casualty evacuation simulations and biomedical equipment.
“The subject matter expert exchanges during PACANGEL 16-3 were designed to be rewarding engagements with key partners and allies — and they certainly were,” said Lt. Col. Edward Khim, PACANGEL 16-3 mission commander.
During these exchanges U.S. Air Force and Sri Lankan air force medics performed a casualty evacuation exercise. As the casualties received treatment, flight surgeons and military physicians evaluated and critiqued the nurses and medics on site. The patients were then transported to a mobile air-staging facility, where personnel evacuated the casualties during a simulated scenario onboard a U.S. Air Force C-130 aircraft.
The flight surgeons were not the only medical professionals who performed exchanges with joint partners across Sri Lanka.
“The main training today at the Jaffna hospital was for general preventative maintenance and trouble shooting techniques,” said Tech. Sgt. Maison Babiera, 18th Medical Support Squadron medical maintenance non-commissioned officer in charge. “This is very important because the majority of the work they're doing are repairs, and in order to prolong the life of the equipment they need to learn the proper procedures for preventative maintenance, ultimately saving money in the long run.”
According to Babiera, the current standard procedure for any type of maintenance on medical equipment is waiting for a call from the hospital stating the equipment needs a repair.
“They aren't use to doing it this way,” said Babiera. “A lot of the time they only repair if there is a call and most of the time no one is making that call. Once they implement the preventative maintenance plan and do routine checks they’ll be able to optimize the use of the medical equipment.”
Like Babiera, U.S. Air Force Maj. David Poole, 35th Medical Operations Squadron physical therapy flight commander was able to teach medical professionals how to improve their current procedures by giving them a new perspective.
“During the SMEE we were able to have a conversation and teach the Bangladesh physical therapy specific things to increase movement,” said Maj. Poole. “We were able to show them the intent of why we do manipulation, joint mechanics, dry needling and various stretches to help give people those movements that allow for better function.”
Poole stated the opportunity to exchange techniques and procedures was not only helpful to the international participants, but also himself, to learn how other countries provide medical care.
Although medical training was the focus of the knowledge swaps, civil engineering and security forces conducted their own SMEEs as well.
“Before construction began, we conducted SMEE with SLAF members,” said Tech. Sgt. Craig Slaten, 354th Civil Engineer Squadron structural craftsman. “The main focus was on using personal protective equipment, ladder safety, electrical safety and fall protection.”
After all was said and done, the SMEE was an overall success and an exciting experience explained Poole.
“I really enjoyed the interactions and being able to bounce ideas off of other professionals from other countries,” said Poole. “The beautiful thing is getting to interact with people who are just as passionate about what they’re doing as you — it’s absolutely amazing. It makes you want to soak up as much information as you possibly can and I hope they were able to feel the same way I did.”
| Date Taken: | 08.19.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 08.26.2016 19:39 |
| Story ID: | 208354 |
| Location: | JAFFNA, LK |
| Web Views: | 133 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Knowledge, experience exchanged between nations at PACANGEL 16-3, by TSgt Brittany Chase, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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