Pulling out the stops in OS16 medical training

Photo By Ensign Margaret Taylor | A Japan Ground Self-Defense Force medic swabs a casualty’s arm prior to administering an IV during a bilateral medical training exercise at Aibano Training Area, Japan, Sept. 12, 2016. Scenarios in the exercise allowed American and Japanese medics to share best practices for casualty treatment in a simulated high-stress combat environment. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Margaret Taylor)  

AIBANO TRAINING AREA, SHIGA, JAPAN

09.12.2016

Story by Staff Sgt. Margaret Taylor  

29th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

AIBANO TRAINING AREA, Japan (Sept. 12, 2016) -- “Bilateral” took on a new meaning during the Japanese-American medical training exercise at Aibano Training Area, Japan, on Sept. 12 during Orient Shield 2016.

Orient Shield itself is a bilateral exercise, and the back-and-forth between Japanese and American medics during the multi-stage training exercise raised the bar. After a week of planning, medical professionals from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force and the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division rolled out a complex simulation.

After taking sniper fire, medics rushed casualties to safety for medical care and then transported them to a landing zone for evacuation by helicopter. And then they did it all again.

“I get to see how other people do what I do, and not only does it make me appreciate my job more, it makes me appreciate what [the JGSDF medics] do," said U.S. Army Sgt. Erica Bruckhart, a medic from the Louisiana Army National Guard and an observer during the simulation. "It just makes my job that much more special.”

Throughout the exercise, JGSDF and U.S. Army medics exchanged best practices, offered encouragement and advice, and generally lived up to what Orient Shield is all about.

• Date Taken: 09.12.2016
• Date Posted: 09.25.2016 14:39
• Story ID: 210534
• Location: AIBANO TRAINING AREA, SHIGA, JP