JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va.– With sweat beading down their faces, the medical Tier-3 training team quickly removes their paintball gear and springs into action, providing lifesaving care as fast as possible before their practice patients arepronounced dead.
To increase readiness, the 633d Medical Group,Education and TrainingFlightat Joint BaseLangley-Eustis, Virginia, hosts tactical combat casualty care trainings in simulated combat zones.
The TCCC courses are split between four tiers, bridging the gap betweenbasic self-aid andadvancedcritical care.The courses require military medics stay disciplined,challenging them to manage stressful situations while also delivering precise TCCC skills.
“We would simulate being in a combat zone with gunfire and screaming.Each team member had a role,”said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jailene Baldivia, 633d Health Care Operations respiratory therapist.“Someone did communicationwhile another managed airway. It forced usto work together quickly.”
Baldivia works within the Langley Air Force Base hospital and has graduated from the Tier-3 training course.
Sheexplainedthatthese real-world scenariosboost unity as ateamandhelpmedics gain confidence and understanding on how fast they need to react during stressful situations.
“I feel as though these exercises have made mefaster in a sense.I’mnotthinking hard about mydecisions. Instead,I justknow how tooperateunder gunfire,”saidBaldivia.
TCCC training not only demands their medics to show improvement but also adaptability.
“Whether it beassessingburns or doing battle buddy carries, the medic trainees are being put into scenarios that induce stress sowe can learn how to react faster in a combat zone.”
With the courses being held in a class-like setting, the medical students can ask questions if needed and receive feedback on how toimprove.
“The emphasis is not only the knowledge from the course but the proficiency in the skill, without reading it off a presentation slide” saidU.S. Air ForceTech.Sgt.DeevonCarpenter,633d Medical Group, Education and Trainingflightchief.
Carpenteris a TCCC program coordinator and works alongside the medic trainees, helping them learn. Heemphasizedthat every day during the course, trainees are given skills with themaingoal ofproficiency.
"Passingthe traineesisn't just aboutthemchecking off a list; it's aboutthemdemonstrating real competence,"saidU.S. Air ForceTech.Sgt.DeevonCarpenter,633d Medical Group, Education and Trainingflightchief.
Theinstructorteam intentionally sets the standards high sothat theyare prepared to execute TCCC correctly when it counts.
“We induce stress to help them filter out distractions and perform under pressure,”saidCarpenter. “We want them to get used to the stress, so they can focus on what’s important.”
Carpenter emphasizes that the TCCC Education and Training flight does their best to go beyond the standard of the TCCC training guidelines.
“We don't lower our standards or grade based on a curve,” said Carpenter. “Our Curriculum is the baseline for us, because at the end of the day, their competence could save somebody's life.”
Not only do the students strive to perfect these skills, but the instructor team aims to prepare them so that when the time comes, they can react quickly in real emergencies.
Medics within the militarycan be the only difference ensuring whether their fellowmembers live or die. By being able to provide care to their patients in uncontrollable and unpredictable circumstances, medics can be considered anessential part to any team.
| Date Taken: |
06.02.2026 |
| Date Posted: |
06.10.2026 09:21 |
| Story ID: |
567314 |
| Location: |
JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: |
19 |
| Downloads: |
0 |
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This work, Enhancing readiness through combat TCCC, by A1C Chloe Goodman, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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