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Engaged in combat scenarios...Corpsmen stay afloat during Vernal Tide

USMC News
Story by Cpl. Ryan D. Libbert
Story Identification Number: 2003210181040

CAMP HANSEN, Okinawa, Japan (Feb. 7, 2003) -- The buildings that stand erect throughout Combat Town in the Central Training Area near Camp Hansen host many training events throughout the year. Marines engaged in firefights is a common site.

But, Combat Town was recently the site of a different type of training with the corpsmen of 3rd Medical Battalion, 3rd Force Service Support Group, participating in Exercise Vernal Tide.

The main purpose of the five-day exercise was to expose the 38 corpsmen of 3rd Medical Battalion's training company to real-world scenarios, claimed Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Adam J. Gadomski, emergency medical technician trainer.

"We're trying to simulate a front-line combat scenario," the Anchorage, Ala., native stated.

"The corpsmen are required to go out into the woods that surround Combat Town and retrieve other corpsmen, posing as injured Marines, that are staged throughout the woods," Gadomski said.

The corpsmen were broken into several groups for the exercise. One group was to infiltrate the woods and find injured Marines. Another group operated the Battalion Aid Station and stood by waiting for patients to treat.

The third group stood by as the Shock Trauma Platoon. Its role was to further treat and assess patients that have more severe cases than the Battalion Aid Station could handle.

The final group was a surgical company, which stood by on Camp Hansen and awaited patients that needed surgery.

The casualties were very authentic as well. Each corpsman who portrayed an injured Marine in the field had make-up applied to make their injuries look severe for the exercise.

Once staged in the woods, they were given scenarios to act upon such as bullet impacts, grenade fragmentation wounds and mine explosion wounds.

After the wounds were applied, the corpsmen were then staged in the woods to be rescued by their fellow corpsmen, according to Gadomski.

"Once the corpsmen find the casualty in the jungle, they must treat him for whatever injury he might have with any tools they have on them or whatever they can find nearby. Afterward, they must get the patient out of the woods and bring him up to the BAS that is set up in Combat Town."

The trip from the woods to the Battalion Aid Station is not meant to be an easy one. Corpsmen had several obstacles to go through during the trip such as mud, thick vegetation and sharp inclined hills.

After reaching the Battalion Aid Station, field corpsmen turned over the wounded to the station's staff who further treated the patient.

If the patient required further care that the Battalion Aid Station could not provide, the patient was then put into the back of an ambulance and sent to the Shock Trauma Platoon, which treated and assessed the patient further unless surgery was needed.

"That's why we have ambulances carrying patients from the BAS to Shock Trauma even though they're right next to each other out here."

A surgical company stood by on Camp Hansen ready to take any patients that were medically evacuated to it.

"In wartime scenarios, the BAS, Shock Trauma Platoon and Surgical Company will be some distance apart from each other," Gadomski said.

Overall, the exercise was a challenging adventure for the corpsmen of 3rd Medical Battalion. They also learned new techniques, according to Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Federico M. Sanchez, field corpsman.

"This is a great opportunity for our junior Sailors to pick up knowledge about how we operate in the field," the Reno, Nev., native said. "I'm also learning new things out here. I usually do whenever we have training events like this."