A patrol is disrupted by sounds of explosions and gunfire as Sailors with 2nd Medical Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group conduct a Tactical Combat Casualty Care training exercise at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Jan. 22, 2018.
The course is a training exercise that refreshes corpsmen’s skills in providing medical care for Marines during combat. Conducted annually, the exercise allows them to meet requirements to deploy and remain up to date with new techniques.
The training began with cardio exercises to increase the corpsmen’s heart rate, they then proceeded to go on a patrol. During their patrol, a simulated improvised explosive device with a powder charge exploded. They had to remain calm and apply the skills they learned throughout the course on simulated casualties.
“This makes our corpsmen deployable and ready,” said Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Grzebyk, a corpsman with 2nd Medical Battalion. “We recreate a battlefield setting as best we can with controlled detonations and machine gun fire; this better recreates a battlefield scenario.”
The Navy has provided medical care for Marines since the Marine Corps was created in 1775, and remains a vital asset trusted to keep our service members ready.
“As a corpsman, our job is to be able to provide aid to any type of field emergency,” said Petty Officer 3rd Class Braden Hunter, a corpsman with 2nd Medical Battalion. “We have to know how to use these techniques for deployments.”
2nd Medical Battalion’s mission is to provide medical support to II Marine Expeditionary units during combat operations in order to meet the warfighters' needs in any environment. TCCC ensures corpsmen perform at the highest level in order to meet this mission.