An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | May 17, 2017

Vermont National Guard Soldiers test medical training

By Staff Sgt. Nathan Rivard 172nd Public Affairs Detachment

CAMP JOHNSON, Vt. — Vermont Army National Guard Soldiers tested their medical training here at Camp Johnson in Colchester, May 6.

Charlie Company (Medical), 186th Brigade Support Battalion, 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain) partnered with Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 126th Aviation Regiment to perform this training.

"We're doing MEDEVAC drills," said Staff Sgt. Robert Slater, critical-care flight medic, C/3-126th AVN (AA). "We're getting their ground medics to work with us, so they understand how to do transfer of care, what we are looking for and how to load the aircraft properly. The big thing is transfer of care."

Slater was taking simulated patients from the 186th BSB after the on-ground combat medics performed initial medical care. Slater was attempting to hit the 'golden hour of medicine' and highly trained forces assist with that goal.

"The golden hour is the standard of care for medicine from the time of injury to the time of treatment," said Slater, a Rutland native. "The battlefield can be far away from where medical treatment is. [Combat medics] can only do so much on the frontline itself. If they know how we want our patients loaded, priorities and things like that, it makes it a lot easier for us to get in, get our patients taken care of and get them off the ground."

The MEDEVAC is one of the final steps, but to get to that point, combat medics need apply their training to keep their patients alive.

"They are practicing applying tourniquets, needle to chest decompression for tension pneumothorax, as well as immobilization of the C-spine, so they can prepare for transport and then they do evaluations and rechecks throughout the entire lane on the patient's status," said 2nd Lt. Nicholas Heredia, a logistics medical officer with the 186th BSB. "The training is real-time for Soldiers…especially for National Guard [Soldiers] because we are natural disaster relief in some cases and that is what we are trying to simulate here."

The training emphasized the multiple phases of medical treatment, as it is a team effort.

"It's really important because if we were doing a Defense Support of Civil Authorities mission or if we were in combat, our units will integrate together," said Maj. Mike Korczykowski, the Charlie Medical Company, 186th BSB commander. "We'll take the casualty and stabilize them and the air ambulance will come in all sorts of weather to get them. It is very important that we communicate and function together."

Korczykowski also said training is maximized by working with multiple units at the same time during their limited time window of a single weekend. Members feel time crunch, but they push through it and 2nd Lt. Heredia saw how Soldiers worked through his training lane.

Each drill the unit is working on revalidating the Soldier's medical skills said Heredia. He also said, being able to put into practice all of the Soldier's skills in one place in a high intensity and high quality scenario is beneficial for them.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Air National Guard Master Sgt. David Torres, Tech. Sgt. Michael Barkman, Senior Master Sgt. Vitaliy Gorbachyk, Staff Sgt. Eduardo Rosado, Staff Sgt. Richard Pyrdol and Capt. Jeffrey McDonald, all members of the 103rd Airlift Wing’s Force Support Squadron, stand together while serving the Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations mission Sept. 15, 2025. The group fills various roles within AFMAO to ensure respect and dignity for the nation’s fallen.
Connecticut Guard Squadron Assists Mortuary Mission at Dover Air Force Base
By Capt. Jennifer Kaprielian, | Sept. 17, 2025
EAST GRANBY, Conn. - During the last five months, Connecticut National Guard members of the 103rd Force Support Squadron have been deployed to a uniquely impactful tasking at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, where they are...

A New York Army National Guard UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter hovers above The Plain at the United States Military Academy at West Point on August 28, 2025 as Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) fast rope down to the ground during a capabilities demonstration for cadets. The exercise was the culmination of training that Soldiers of the 3rd Battalion, 142nd Assault Helicopter Battalion had been conducting with members of the 101st Airborne in June, July, and August
New York Guard Aviators Show Skills During West Point Demonstration
By Eric Durr, | Sept. 17, 2025
WEST POINT, N.Y.  - Three months of New York Army National Guard aircrews training with the active-component Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division, the Army’s air assault experts, wrapped up Aug. 28 with a capabilities...

Kosovo Forces Regional Command-East’s (KFOR RC-E) 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) aircrew members trained alongside KFOR RC-E British forces in hot and cold load operations at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, Aug. 25, 2025. The exercise familiarizes multinational soldiers with UH-60 Black Hawk procedures and prepares them for potential emergency MEDEVAC missions in the region.
Louisiana Guard, UK Soldiers’ Training Builds Readiness in Kosovo
By Sgt. Laura Bradley, | Sept. 17, 2025
CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo — On the surface, they come from different worlds, one a U.K. combat medic on her first operational deployment, the other a seasoned U.S. Army flight paramedic with hundreds of flight hours under her...