Written by French Army 1st Lt. Aurelie Lattès,RC-East PAO Monday, 12 March 2012
KAPISA PROVINCE, Afghanistan — Four French Soldiers were killed and 14 others seriously wounded by machine gun fire while conducting physical training on Forward Operating Base Gwan, Jan. 20. While the attack was a tragedy, the quick actions of American and French doctors and medics avoided a further disaster.
This is the story of the coalition medical teams that responded that day and how their actions saved lives:
French Capt. Matthew FOB Gwan’s doctor, was running with his and an operational mentoring and liaison team, or OMLT, when gunshots suddenly rang out. His nurse and health assistant were both hit and Matthew was faced with a mass casualty event. Luckily, members of the French Battle Group Picardie were also present and leapt into action to immediately help triage, transport and evacuate the wounded. They weren’t alone.
The entire theater health care staff launched into motion. French LT. Col. Jean Yves, head of the Task Force La Fayette Patient Evacuation Coordination Cell, or PECC, immediately committed all available medical evacuation assets at his disposal. As the medical team reinforced FOB Gwan on the ground, helicopters from French Battle Group Musketeer and U.S. Task Force Talon evacuated the wounded to International Security Assistance Force hospitals at Bagram Airfield and Kabul International Airport.
Doctor (Col.) Marc, health commander in Kabul, oversees strategic evacuation. According to Marc time was a vital element to the operation.
“No failure is allowed because everyone has a role to play. This is a demanding medical chain. It is consistent, continuous and complementary," Marc said.
Because every minute counts in medevac operations, doctors, nurses and medics were airlifted from nearby FOB Surobi as evacuations continued. The teams helped to stabilize, infuse, intubate, ventilate, oxygenate and treat pain for eight critically and six seriously wounded patients awaiting transport.
Despite poor weather conditions and enemy fire, the PECC coordinated with Capt. Matthew to evacuate the injured soldiers. Getting the wounded to hospitals was critical. U.S. Air Force Maj. Joseph du Bose, a trauma surgeon, stressed the importance of getting them to the next level of care.
“Once a patient gets in Bagram hospital he has a 95 to 98 percent survival rate. The French and US medevac teams were really fast and efficient,” du Bose said.
At Bagram, the Craig Joint-theatre hospital is alerted that patients are on the way. Immediately, teams are created and all hands are on deck. They prepare trauma bays with beds, blood bags, drugs and the other implements used in emergency care.
Lt. Col. Conner, from the hospital, recalls the teams reaction, “As soon as we received the notification of casualties, our entire staff dropped everything they were doing to be able to receive the number [casualties] and level of injuries. From clinical to supplies, labatory or pharmacy staff, everybody was preparing the material needed to save lives.”
With the preparations made, the atmosphere becomes strange. The air is thick with tension as everyone is waiting. Suddenly, like a scene played out in countless movies and television shows, the emergency entrance doors are pushed open by stretchers. A ballet of doctors and nurses begins. The emergency room is full, but everybody is working quietly; focused solely on the task at hand. Everyone knows exactly what he or she has to do and how to do it without disturbing others. For example, on one patient, a medic will look at the injured leg while the other works on a chest wound.
Most of the staff at the hospital are American and so French liaisons, known as LNOs, from Task Force Lafayette, are standing beside each patient. The LNOs not only translate between the patients and medical personnel but also provide the injured a measure of reassurance. Maj. du Bose explains that in a state of shock it is important for the victim to hear his native language.
Within an hour after their arrival at Craig joint hospital, the first group of wounded are already in surgery. Their lives saved by the efficient and professional medical system.
When the dust settles, five of the wounded have already been flown to Kabul where a medical plane waits to take them back to France. The two others will stay in intensive care to go back into surgery before going home.
The work done with the wounded was tremendous. The care and attention given by the US medical corps to their French comrades was incredible. And when Mr. Longuet, the French Minister of Defence came to Bagram to visit the wounded, he thanked Craig hospital personnel and praised the team’s efficiency, professionalism and generosity to their brothers in arms.
A month after the attack, on Feb. 20, a ceremony was held for the French fallen heroes memorial unveiling. This emotional ceremony was also an opportunity for the French forces to salute the exceptional work done by the Craig hospital staff.
U.S. Army Col. Guillermo Tellez, Maj. Joseph du Bose and Maj. Bradley Putty received awards for their actions that day but they merely represent a team of lifesavers that act everyday at Bagram Airfield. Modest and humble, major du Bose says he was only doing his job, but admits, “To be part of this ceremony, will be a memory that I will carry all the rest of my life.”
The wounded will also remember for the rest of their lives what the Bagram hospital medical team has done for them.
(c) CJTF-1
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