Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Hernandez | Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Genaro Oxford, a combat medic assigned to the Red Rock, Ariz.,...... read more read more
FORT HUNTER-LIGGETT, Calif. – More than 100 Army Reserve medical Soldiers, both organic and cross-level augmentees, to the Salt Lake City, Utah-based 2nd Medical Training Brigade and the Red Rock, Arizona-based 7220th Medical Support Unit have respectively provided training
support and assets to rotational training units, or RTUs, and real-world medical aid during Exercise Global Medic 2025 and Mojave Falcon here, from May 28, 2025, to June 11, 2025.
Additionally, Regional Training Site - Medical, also known as RTS-MED, from the Parks Reserve Forces Training Area, California and Fort Gordon, Georgia locations provided Deployable Medical Systems, or DEPMEDS, and medical training devices and simulation equipment to RTUs engaged in hospitalization training in GM 25 and MF 25.
The collection of units falls under the organizational umbrella of the Pinellas Park, Florida-based Army Reserve Medical Command, or AR-MEDCOM, one of three Army Reserve functional commands centered on the Army medical spectrum.
For approximately two weeks, the AR-MEDCOM downtrace units were an integral component to the dual training exercises and supported the overall training audience that comprised of the 807th Theater Medical Command, the 91st Training Division, the 79th Theater Sustainment Command and the 84th Training Command.
Captain Sydnie Morgridge, a special effects technician and critical care nurse with the Sacramento, California-based 7305th Medical Training Support Battalion, said her unit provided oversight and guidance, and heightened realism with their manikins and other training assets.
They're very useful for the training audience,” Morgridge said. “It is really nice to have a manikin or a 'SimMan' out there with the nurses and the doctors and the providers can see what the injury is, they can reassess the patient and they get preventive vital signs sometimes. Some of these manikins change as they deteriorate, so it is very helpful for the training
audience.
The 'SimMan' is very realistic, because you can assess the eyes, it will scream and it will bleed,” said Morgridge.
Sergeant Izabella Conley, an animal care specialist with the San Antonio-based 7210th Medical Support Unit and augmentee for the 2nd MTB, said a lot of the scenario-oriented events centered around a ‘diesel dog,’ a simulated canine designed to replicate the characteristics of an actual dog.
"We thankfully are fortunate enough to have a 'diesel dog,'” said Conley. “A 'diesel dog' allows us to do a lot of different trainings on them without having a real-life animal here. We're able to make it cry, growl, bark, and we can even have them almost sound like they have difficulty
breathing with them. We're able to have them bleed, we're able to be able to train on more common injuries that we've seen on military working dogs like GDV (gastric dilatation volvulus), gunshot wounds and amputations."
In addition to training support for the RTUs that took part in Exercise Global Medic and Mojave Falcon 2025, the 7220th MSU contributed to the combined training exercises by providing medical services and support to troops who sustained illness or injury in their endeavors.
Major Amie Billstrom, a medical provider who temporarily augmented the 7220th MSU and originally from the Rochester, Minnesota-based 7212th MSU, said her unit had a large responsibility in medical coverage for all the exercise participants.
"The mission of the 7220th MSU at Mojave Falcon is to provide real-world medical care to all the troops who are boots on ground here,” Billstrom said. “It's about 4,000 to 6,000 troops here, and we have five aid stations."
Billstrom said the operating tempo, or OPTEMPO, of Exercise Global Medic and Mojave Falcon and the arid, high heat climate of Fort Hunter Liggett kept the 7220th MSU Soldiers busy and cognizant to any emergencies.
"Having a real-world aid station here allows them to get sick call, when necessary,” said Billstrom. “We've been treating upper respiratory infections, skin infections and musculoskeletal injuries from different movements. Our 12-hour operations from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. provided them that opportunity to get the care that they need. We also provided 24-hour
emergency care coverage, so we've had quite a number of heat casualties that we've had to address, just given the OPTEMPO and the temperatures out here in the Mojave Desert and making sure that we're on standby to get the Soldiers to where they need to go if they need advanced medical care."
Although both mission sets were for exercise support, they were also training opportunities for the Soldiers of the 2nd MTB and the 7220th MSU.
Pfc. Ignacio Madriz, a combat medic with the San Diego, California-based 7452nd Medical Operational Readiness Unit who augmented the 7220th MSU during the combined training exercises, said he learned a lot during his experience and for his first annual training, or AT, stint in the Army Reserve.
"Personally, I feel really grateful actually,” Madriz said. “For myself, this is my first AT, so I'm getting real-world training from this exercise as well as helping the Soldiers we have here training for Mojave Falcon."
Exercise Global Medic and Mojave Falcon 2025 prepare and assess Army Reserve Soldiers in their competencies to ensure readiness to support large-scale combat operations and large-scale mobilization operations.
A key ingredient to success is the willingness to learn and confidence to execute the mission, Conley said.
“We're very passionate about what we do,” Conley said. “And so, when they see that, they see it and read it through, they're more interested in it, and they ask us more questions because they want to learn more.
It's really nice to be able to kind of spread it amongst everybody, the knowledge."
| Date Taken: | 06.13.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.13.2025 03:06 |
| Story ID: | 500534 |
| Location: | FORT HUNTER LIGGETT, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 95 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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