Combat Medic Memorial

Picked this up off of Jems and thought it was interesting.  However, I don’t think its the “Pentagon” honoring combat medics, just this particular doctor.

Well, if they do decide to set up a memorial to combat medics, corpsman, and the like, I would encourage everyone to support it.

Pentagon Honors Medics Killed in Wars

At least 220 medics, Navy corpsmen and other medical personnel have been killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“They’re my heroes,” says the Pentagon’s top doctor, S. Ward Casscells, who has co-authored a book on them and meets Wednesday with some of their families in hopes of getting support to build a memorial to their sacrifices.

[...]

Doctors, nurses and other medical personnel have borne the strain of what they’ve seen in the two wars, where burns, amputations and blast wounds from roadside bombs have shattered so many bodies. “But by far, the people bearing the brunt on the medical side have been the medics and corpsmen,” because they are on the front line with their units, he said. They carry defensive weapons and go where their company or platoon goes _ searching out insurgents, raiding homes, manning checkpoints and so on.

The history of Iraq and Afghanistan is filled with stories of those who dared to run to the wounded in the middle of a firefight, or kept applying bandages, checking pulses and lifting troops to safety when they themselves were wounded. A number have received the Silver Star and other decorations.

“They’re not supposed to be dashing through a hail of bullets,” Casscells said, but that unspoken standard set by some weighs on their minds.