A Quick Synopsis

I haven’t been saying a lot about what I have been actually doing since getting here.  I am not really sure why exactly.  Last time I reported from Iraq it was full of little stories and narratives about what I was experiencing.  Maybe its because the experience is so different this time compared to last time?  Maybe I don’t think its as interesting or report worthy, I don’t really know.  Anyway, I am going to give it a shot now and run down some of the things we have been doing.

So what is it like to do a MEDEVAC?  You rush out to the helicopter after receiving a 9-line and get in the air within 15 minutes.  Depending on the situation, you are either going to a hospital or out to the point of injury.  The mission doesn’t really matter, you still have to be in the air in 15 minutes, and depending on weather, you might be flying through some less than ideal conditions.

When we land, we get out, all out gear on and disconnect the intercom from the bird.  This leaves us pretty much deaf from all the outside noise.  We approach the patient and attendants, receive the report,load the stretcher onto the bird, and then leave as fast as possible.  In the air The medic is trying to care for the patient and watch out his side of the aircraft to avoid hazards.  We work in a small space where there is basically just enough room to squat.  Depending on the number of patients, you can have as little as a few inches of space to work on each patient.  We do what has to be done as best we can, and continue to monitor the patients (up to 6) while enroute.

Once on the ground, the patients are unloaded and taken into the medical facility where we give a report and leave. 

Everything happens pretty fast, and even the most routine transfers can wear you out.  The helicopter doesn’t have A/C, so even with the windows open, its still pretty hot.  We don’t fly with cargo doors open for obvious reasons.  After even a few hours you are pretty exhausted from all the bumping, rattling, vibrating, and work that goes into Medevac missions.  It doesn’t help when someone shoots at you either.

When the mission is over you reset and prepare to start all over again, sometimes with no break between flights.

That’s about how a day here runs.  We work 24 hours in each response position and then get a “day off.” 

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