Photo By Alun Thomas | Staff Sgt. Brian Frias (center), recruiter, 6th Medical Recruiting Battalion,...... read more read more
PHOENIX – Ten years ago Staff Sgt. Brian Frias found himself at a dead end. At the age of 24 he was working on a farm in Ohio and wondering where his life would take him. All that mattered was where the next six-pack of beer was coming from.
He knew he had to make a change; the U.S. Army provided him with just that.
A decade later, Frias has carved out an eventful, and fruitful, career as a medic, currently serving as a medical recruiter with the 6th Medical Recruiting Battalion, located in Las Vegas.
Frias recently attended the 2023 Association of Career and Technical Educators CareerTech Vision event, Phoenix Convention Center, Dec. 1, where he was able to demonstrate his abilities at a simulated mobile hospital situated on the U.S. Army booth.
“I have past experience setting one of these (mobile hospitals) up. I used them in Honduras where the Army performs invaluable humanitarian missions,” Frias said. “There, I got to see traumas we don’t normally see in the U.S., and we’re able to provide free health care.”
Frias said he relishes the chance to be a medical recruiter and show the public exactly what he does.
"We’re trying to show people the opportunities and experiences the Army can offer,” he said. “I was 24 years old and a farmer in Ohio when I enlisted. Now I’m about to graduate with my bachelor’s degree while also practicing medicine, both things I never thought I’d be doing.”
For Frias the Army has given him an outlet to pursue avenues he never considered.
“I never imagined I’d be responsible for saving lives and helping people,” Frias explained. “I get to satisfy my passions; I get to change the world in my own way, and the educational benefits have helped immensely.”
One experience stands out for Frias during his career so far, one that helped prove how essential his job as a medic is.
“When I was a specialist stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, a four-year old female patient was not looking in great shape,” Frias recalled. “I had just graduated my ACLS (Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support) training, and I found myself having to bring her back from a state of unconsciousness and near death.”
"It was nice knowing she was alive, but it was her mother right outside the trauma bed that really hit home for me,” Frias said.
Frias said his decision to join the Army was the hardest part of the process, but he isn’t looking back – instead forward.
“Deciding to join was the hardest part, but it opened so many opportunities,” Frias said. “I didn’t think when I joined that I’d still be here a decade later – but everything else has fallen into place since then. It’s the best decision I’ve ever made.”
| Date Taken: | 12.06.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 12.06.2023 16:11 |
| Story ID: | 459294 |
| Location: | PHOENIX, AZ, US |
| Web Views: | 140 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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