Tuesday, March 15, 2011 BAGHDAD— A military convoy rolled down a dusty road returning to base, when a deafening blast and a blinding flash of light ripped through the air. An improvised explosive device had gone off and as the dust settled, an eerie silence followed, broken only by the growing moans of the injured. A Soldier screamed, asking in confusion, “Where are we? Where are we?” All in the convoy were wounded, and many might not survive without immediate medical care.
Capt. Victoria Starks of Hopewell, Va., chief of administrative law at the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, 25th Infantry Division, United States Division-Center, and Spc. Tara Mendez of Window Rock, Ariz., a court reporter with OSJA, 25th Inf. Div., USD-C, use a two-man carry to move a
Fortunately, the IED encounter was only a simulation in the final phase of the Combat Lifesaver Course given recently by medics from Headquarters Support Company, Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 25th Infantry Division, United States Division-Center, at Camp Liberty, Iraq.
Known as the trauma lanes, this last stage of the 40-hour course puts students’ skills to the test and is the culmination of classroom instruction and hands-on training in tasks such as controlling bleeding and splinting a leg.
The pace was demanding as teams hurried through the lanes, evaluating casualties, applying tourniquets where needed, returning fire and moving the injured to safety for further first aid and medical evacuation.
“You’re working in a time constraint, and in real life, you’ve got to think about where you have to be, running around quickly,” said Spc. Christie Adams of Niagara Falls, N.Y., who serves in the role of administrative noncommissioned officer in charge, Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, 25th Inf. Div., USD-C. “You can’t pause and think. You just have to act.”
Role-playing medics acted as casualties and challenged the students, shouting for help and covered in fake blood and wounds to create a scene reminiscent of combat. Some students of past CLS classes said the added human element made training difficult but also more effective.
“Last time I actually did the training, it was with dummies,” said Spc. Tara Mendez of Window Rock, Ariz., a court reporter with OSJA, 25th Inf. Div., USD-C. “I like this better, just because of the fact that you can see how heavy they are and how their clothing gets in the way. They are yelling and screaming, and the dummy’s just always unconscious.”
The combat-like environment helps to reinforce the knowledge gained during class. “You can perfect it in the classroom, but once you get out and actually have to put it to use, that’s when all of it really comes to show what you’ve learned,” said Spc. Rodrick Davis of Jacksonville, Fla., a supply clerk in HSC, HHBN, 25th Inf. Div., USD-C. “I definitely think I would be more prepared if I ever have to do this again in real life.” While some of the students were first-timers in the course, others had come to recertify and noticed how the training had changed.
Past CLS training was confined to the classroom and primarily focused on tasks like administering fluids intravenously, said Capt. Victoria Starks, who is from Hopewell, Va., and chief of administrative law at OSJA. “We didn’t do a scenario like this. So this application-based test is a lot better than what I’d initially gone through.” The CLS Course is now more geared toward the basics of what Soldiers need to do to save lives on the battlefield, said Staff Sgt. Andre Sonne, HSC, HHBN, 25th Inf. Div., USD-C, who supervises the division program. “They’ve gone away from some of the stuff they know doesn’t work.”
Although the course isn’t mandatory for every Soldier, the Army goal is to basically have two certified per squad, said Sonne, a Saco, Maine, native. “In this kind of setup, you want at least two per section, and of course the more the better. We don’t really try to set a maximum at all, just a minimum.”
Still, Sonne recommends that everyone get this training. Since the division began teaching the CLS Course here in January, he said they have trained approximately 50 Soldiers and will continue to offer the course each month.
“Every Soldier can perform these basic medical skills to save lives,” he said. “Whether you’re on the FOB (forward operating base), or you’re actually out in sector, you never know what’s going to happen. I think everybody in the Army should be CLS-certified, because it just adds to the combat power and the sustainment of troops.”