Photo By Staff Sgt. Benjamin Bugenig | Maj. Eric Badger, 51st Fighter Wing Commander's Action Group chief, attempts to look...... read more read more
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Whether he’s supporting his wife and four kids, managing the ins and outs of hospital care, or adventuring alongside his friends, Maj. Eric Badger always puts people first.
Although the Air Force major currently works as chief of the 51st Fighter Wing Commander’s Action Group, his career of choice is hospital administration.
It may not be as exciting a job as an emergency room doctor or delivery nurse, but for Badger, it was a natural fit.
“The hospital setting is one of service to people and I enjoy helping people,” Badger said. “I’m usually the guy who tells everyone ‘I’m gonna keep you guys alive,’ and then help with whatever we’re doing.”
His affinity for helping people starts further back than his career in the Air Force. Even as a child, the seeds of supporting others in need already started sprouting.
Maj. Eric Badger, 51st Fighter Wing Commander's Action Group chief stands in front of his many trinkets and awards he's collected throughout his career.
“I grew up with a lot of bullies and a lot of punks,” he said. “They were punks to people around me, like my buddy that I played video games with every Saturday. He was getting picked on and I was like, ‘this is jacked up!’”
Fighting bullies wasn’t his goal, but Badger found his own creative ways to teach them a lesson and show solidarity for his friends.
“Thankfully that particular bully played soccer with me,” he said. “I was pretty good at soccer, and I played defense. So, there’s no reason why you can’t kick a ball as hard as you want at somebody’s face.”
Even now, caring for people doesn’t end when he clocks out at the end of the day. “I play video games as well,” Badger said. “In [the video game] Monster Hunter I play with a hunting horn, which buffs other teammates.”
“Buffing” refers to the act of strengthening or healing fellow allies that he’s playing with. He plays a similarly supporting-role character in Dungeons and Dragons, where his bard character plays music and cracks jokes to help the adventuring party.
Badger’s inspiration for choosing the medical field as his occupation doesn’t come from his childhood exploits or his extracurricular shenanigans, but from his family history. His father worked in hospital admin for most of his life, while his brothers also work in the medical field. (His mother, who was a teacher, likely contributed to his sisters choosing a career in teaching psychology.)
“We’re kind of a healthcare and teaching family for the most part,” Badger said.
Before taking the leap into hospital administration, Badger wanted the proper guidance from his father; someone who worked as a hospital admin for 25 years at the time.
Maj. Eric Badger, 51st Fighter Wing Commander's Action Group chief, attempts to look like he's working for an obviously staged photo.
“He wanted me to be sure,” Badger said. “It’s not a low stress environment, he cautioned me to not do it.”
Regardless of the warning, Badger moved forward with his choice and attended Virginia Commonwealth University of Richmond for his graduate degree. Before joining the military, he was able to accumulate civilian hospital experience, which gave him something to compare it to.
“There’s a lot of regulation in hospitals,” he said. “There’s a lot to handle, especially with community hospitals, because you’re trying to stay positive on the budget.”
The stress and focus changed after Badger commissioned into the Air Force. The once budget-centric tension gave way to an environment that focuses on the care people need.
“Life as an administrator is a lot easier in the military,” he said. “We focus more on the people and less on the dollar. We focus on helping whatever mission set they’re in.”
And he truly enjoys what he does.
“I love the variety of my career field,” Badger said. “We can do readiness, logistics, information systems; and outside of the hospital we can do air evacuation, medical planning and a host of other staff jobs. Variety is the spice of life.”
What is next for this caring Badger?
“I intend to stay in for 20 years,” he said. “My ideal plan is to eventually be the career field functional (Brigadier General). I think I would find a lot of satisfaction in that position.”
| Date Taken: | 02.04.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.31.2020 21:46 |
| Story ID: | 365019 |
| Location: | KR |
| Web Views: | 129 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, From health to hobbies, this Badger cares, by SSgt Benjamin Bugenig, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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