Keeping it fresh: Reserve emergency medical technicians keep current on their skills

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Shawn Rhodes
  • 927th Air Refueling Wing
MacDill Air Force Base, Fla. --  Senior Airman Brittanee Bernal was working in an emergency room in Arizona when a firefighter covered in burns was wheeled through the double doors. With his body swelling internally from burns covering 80% of his skin, Brunal quickly went to work slicing cuts into his arms and legs to relieve the pressure. As an emergency medical technician, she lived for this kind of work - making the difference between life and death for others. While making decisions that affect whole families is part and parcel to the job of an EMT, Bernal learned her medical skills in the Air Force Reserve. In the reserves, 23-year-olds like her make decisions that affect thousands of people every day.

Like most reservists, Bernal holds a day job and goes to school. Unlike her classmates at college, she could be called to go anywhere in the world within a few hours, so it is imperative that she be current in her skills as an EMT. Recently, she and nine other reservists with the 927th Air Refueling Wing's Aeromedical Staging Squadron participated in a Basic EMT Skills Refresher Course.

"The military takes this training extremely seriously, with the same standards as those in the civilian sector," said James Norbech, the medical training manager for the 6th Medical Group, the active-duty medical unit at MacDill AFB. "With the Air Force medical mission becoming much more diverse, it is important they have all the skills and knowledge we can provide the students."

The five-day course mixes days of classroom instruction with practical application. Both types of instruction are intense - students must sometimes know more than 60 sequential steps to each emergency scenario. Although the training is tough, all the reservists know how important it is.

"You have to play detective when you're trying to figure out what's wrong with a patient," Bernal said. She had just completed running through a motor-vehicle accident scenario that involved quickly assessing a potential spinal injury with an unresponsive patient. Such a scenario gives EMTs little time to act, so they must know how to immediately intervene to save the patient's life. "It's a lot like controlled chaos, but I truly love my job."
Norbech teaches the refresher course to both active-duty members and reservists. He appreciates the diverse background reservists bring to the table, because they all lead different lives away from the base.

"Some reservists here are in the medical field full-time, and some aren't. With active-duty medical personnel, they all have the same experiences inside of the military community," Norbech said. "Reservists bring a lot of different backgrounds and experiences with them to the table."

The classes serve the important purpose of keeping the EMTs up-to-date on any changes or improvements made in their job field over the last two years. While many of the standards remain constant, it is vital for the technicians to remain current with medical treatment. After all, they are asked to do much more than their civilian counterparts.

"A civilian EMT can't start an (intravenous)," Bernal said. "As military EMTs, we're trained to do that. We can also administer medications, where a civilian EMT cannot."
Many of the students serve in their communities as full-time emergency response personnel and volunteer firefighters. However, many also lead separate lives in non-medical career fields when they are not serving their country.

"Because of the EMT certification we have in the Air Force Reserve, you have a whole group of people who can start basic life-saving techniques anytime, anyplace in their communities," Norbech said.

Life-threatening incidents happen on the back roads of small towns and in the streets of big cities. It is comforting to know there are skilled warriors out there, ready to put their military training to use by saving the lives of people in their community. When an injured person looks up to see a neighbor or co-worker performing life-saving techniques on them, it may be an Air Force reservist by their side.