ALPENA, Mich. - In the era of great power competition, caring for and transporting patients will be essential for our joint force. Northern Strike 24-2 is exercising this capability through the 127th Medical Group’s En Route Patient Staging System (ERPSS).
From Aug. 11-13, Selfridge Air National Guard Base’s 127th MDG ran an ERPSS facility next to the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center flightline. The team received and loaded numerous simulated patients onto U.S. Army and Air Force aircraft.
“We are a segue between a Role 2 and Role 3 medical facility,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Christopher Hanczaruk, 127th MDG primary ERPSS physician. “The transit of casualties in battle goes from the point of injury, where they are then medevaced to a Role 2 facility, which in the Air Force is known as an [Expeditionary Medical Support System]. Laymen may know it as a MASH facility. There, they are surgically stabilized for the injuries they sustained in combat.
“From that point, they are transitioned to one of our ERPSS facilities, typically situated close to an airfield or helicopter pad, in anticipation of evacuation out of the theater into a more established hospital,” he said.
U.S. Air Force Capt. Andrew Chandler, 127th MDG medical readiness officer, said Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, was the follow-on care facility from Alpena. The team treated 50 “patients,” evacuating 47 for further care on four flights.
“We have 20 members out here training,” said Chandler. “Northern Strike is the best opportunity for us to practice. Going through the motions in a training environment allows everyone to understand each other’s jobs and figure out a workflow.”
Establishing and running an ERPSS facility is one of the 127th MDG’s critical capabilities.
“Not all medical units have an ERPSS,” said Chandler. “Our unit will deploy as a package to set up the ERPSS wherever we are needed. We get to play how we would work and go through the stress now in a safe environment before we head out the door.”
With approximately 6,300 personnel from 32 states and territories, NS 24-2 provided the medics plenty of opportunities to work with their joint partners.
“It is rare to get in this many assets of a joint force,” said Hanczaruk. “We are working very closely with the Army and their ground and rotary assets. We are working closely with the Navy with one of our teams in Lake Huron. It’s great to interact with personnel from different branches in opportunities we might not otherwise get to.”
Northern Strike strives for a realistic and dynamic environment to build readiness with visiting units. For instance, the ERPSS team was asked to form an aeromedical evacuation team to care for patients in transit on the MC130J Commando II.
“The planners of Northern Strike like to throw curve balls at you to make sure you are able to adjust for contingencies, which is more realistic in a combat situation,” said Hanczaruk. “This shows we are always ready, always preparing. We have a saying in the medical group that they always send the best to save the best, and that’s what we are prepared to do.”