Medical personnel from Winn Army Community Hospital and Soldiers from across the 3rd Infantry Division enhanced their trauma care proficiency last week during the Rural Interactive Trauma Simulation Course, a hands-on training event designed to reinforce life-saving skills essential to battlefield medicine.
The course, now in its pilot year, is facilitated by the Medical College of Georgia. The program exposes military medical providers to realistic trauma scenarios, particularly those common in remote or resource-limited environments.
Lisa Tyler, nurse educator at Winn Army Community Hospital, said the training directly supports the hospital’s mission of preparing clinicians and warfighters for real-world emergencies.
“These are the people that are going to be taking care of you and your family members out on the battlefield,” Tyler said. “So it’s very important that they get these hands-on skills before they actually need to use them.”
Tyler oversaw 20 participants rotating through stations such as intraosseous access, central lines, pelvic binders, airway management, cricothyrotomy, intubation and chest tube placement. She said the experience is critical to maintaining trauma proficiency for the hospital.
“This is a very crucial part in helping us maintain our trauma designation,” Tyler said.
Winn emergency department noncommissioned officer in charge Sgt. 1st Class Randy Brandt described the training as essential preparation for procedures that are rarely performed but carry significant risk.
“So today we’re running through some trauma training. It is necessary trauma training,” Brandt said. “This is a lot of the stuff that I would consider to be low volume, high risk stuff — the very deep in-depth, bread and butter of what we do, but we don’t do it very often.”
Brandt said training alongside civilian medical partners helps validate military medical standards and build confidence among participants.
“It’s especially good to do it with external agencies, people that we don’t normally work with,” he said. “It just kind of confirms that what we do is right, that these are kind of standard across not just the Army, but the healthcare profession in general.”
For Soldiers operating in austere environments, the course mirrors the realities of battlefield medicine, where advanced equipment and imaging may not be available.
Capt. Jessica Richards, a nurse with 703rd Brigade Support Battalion, said the rural focus of the training makes it particularly relevant for deployed warfighters.
“So obviously, our training today is focused on trauma, especially in the rural setting, which is very applicable to our war fighters, because they are out with very minimal resources,” Richards said. “And so we’re kind of talking about those few things that we can do without all of the technology and imaging that would be helpful to make those decisions, and what we can do in the field to prepare to get them to that level in trauma center.”
As the only nurse in her Role II team, Richards said the course strengthened her ability to support medics and guide care under pressure.
“I’m very grateful to be a part of this training,” Richards said. “I can perform a quick FAST exam in the absence of someone that might be more experienced, and help out with that. Same with having the medics here doing the IOs, doing the central lines, because even though we might not be the ones placing them, we’re going to be the ones caring for them later.”
Richards said the experience also provided valuable perspective on how military and civilian trauma care intersect.
“It’s just really cool to see it from all different points of the people participating in the care, and then obviously to comparing it to our civilian counterparts, where we may be sending soldiers for follow-on care,” she said.
Brandt emphasized that while the procedures practiced during the course may be infrequent, the expectation for excellence remains constant.
“This is exactly what patients come to us for,” Brandt said. “To receive this higher level care.”
The Rural Interactive Trauma Simulation Course supports Winn Army Community Hospital’s ongoing commitment to medical readiness, ensuring its teams are prepared to provide lifesaving care to Soldiers, families and retirees when it matters most.
| Date Taken: | 12.17.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 12.17.2025 10:03 |
| Story ID: | 554549 |
| Location: | FORT STEWART, GEORGIA, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Winn staff strengthens trauma readiness through rural simulation training, by Gustave Rehnstrom, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
