Photo By Otis Toussaint | Maj. Bryan Ahlborn (left) and Sgt. 1st Class David McAfee (right) from Regional Health...... read more read more
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FORT HOOD, Texas – The team of Maj. Bryan Ahlborn and Sgt. 1st Class David McAfee from Regional Health Command-Central are the winners of the 2022 Command Sgt. Maj. Jack L. Clark, Jr., U.S. Army Best Medic Competition. The event was held from Jan. 24-28. More than 40 competitors fought for the title in teams of two. The competition was intense, and the teams faced a number of very difficult challenges.
This event is a two-Soldier team competition that physically and intellectually challenges the Army's best medics in a multi-day demanding, continuous, and realistic simulated operational environment. Competitors bring strength of character, resolve of steel, and a commitment to readiness and duty.
Ahlborn is a 67 Foxtrot pharmacist, and McAfee is a 68 Whiskey health care specialist.
“It was very demanding. We were prepared for it. It tested our medical skills and our physical capabilities. This helped to get us ready for combat deployments,” Ahlborn said.
“The competition was phenomenal,” said Lt. Gen. R. Scott Dingle, Surgeon General of the Army and Command General, U.S. Army Medical Command. “Never before have I seen the organization, the challenges, the professionalism” that is needed to put on this event.
The Command Sgt. Maj. Jack L. Clark, Jr., U.S. Army Best Medic Competition is dedicated to the 13th Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army Medical Command. Clark was one of the most respected leaders and noncommissioned officers in the history of the command who understood the important role of medics in the Army and the trust Soldiers and leaders of units in combat must have in the Army Medical Department.
The competitors who finished -in second place were Staff Sgt. Shaun Shea and Sgt. Matthew Farinella from the 75th Ranger Regiment, and the third place finishers were Staff Sgt. Brian Leddie and Spc. William Duncan from the 82nd Airborne. All four are 68 Whiskeys.
“To be in this competition, you have to first earn your Expert Field Medical Badge. You train up for that. I would encourage all medics and medical personnel to do that so you can be more prepared for combat medical tasks. Then you can come to this and test your skills,” said Ahlborn.
“We put everything in perspective,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Diamond D. Hough of the Army Medical Command. “Emerging requirements, emerging threats that we understood we may face in the future, we included that in the training this year.
“Grueling foot marches, buddy runs, high value target extractions, prolonged field care, weapons qualifications, so you combine it all and you put it in 144 hours continuous with limited amounts of sleep and food. Training for war is grueling, and we made sure this competition represented war-like conditions.”
“It tested our medical readiness in ways that we were not anticipating,” said McAfee. “There was no way to be absolutely ready for each of these events. It definitely challenged us mentally, physically and emotionally.”
Hough also thanked the hosts of the competition, “We were extremely happy with the support we received from 3rd Corps. We had tactical vehicles, we had other support.”
The Best Medic Competition is open to all active duty, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve medical Soldiers who have earned the Combat Medical Badge or Expert Field Medical Badge.
“It’s up to you to further your own skills and enhance your training. You are really serving every member of the United States military. It’s a big responsibility,” said McAfee.
The foundation of the Best Medic Competition is the value it brings to the Army.
This competition supports the Army because it promotes “readiness,” said Dingle. “Our combat medics are a medical instrument of power. We will be ready when called upon to deploy, fight, and win in combat.”
Army medics take great pride in being the best Soldiers they can be.
“We are in the best profession in the world,” said Hough. “That’s from someone who has served over 30 years. We take pride in taking care of the sons and daughters of our nation. This competition helped prepare our medics.”
| Date Taken: | 02.04.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.07.2022 12:08 |
| Story ID: | 413979 |
| Location: | TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 123 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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