Medical staff provide real-world involvement to exercise

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Christopher Reel
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Tyndall's medical staff provide a real-world element to the deployment/employment exercise Aug. 11 to 15.

Their roles and responsibilities included ensuring all pre-deployment medical services were provided in support of contingency operations, while providing trusted quality care.

"The medical group is the linchpin when it comes to getting deployers out the door," said Staff Sgt. Whitney Rountree, 325th Medical Group NCO in charge of deployment medicine. "Any medical hiccup could potentially impact the entire mission. We are required to demonstrate effective deployment planning and execution capabilities and extend our operational limits while remaining flexible, adaptable and responsive to our normal patients' needs."

This was the first time the medical group processed real-world deployers in conjunction with exercise members.

The medical staff stood up in the personnel deployment function line, which is a synchronized system put in place to ensure that deploying personnel are eligible to deploy and are properly accounted for.

"The PDF serves as the installation's focal point for monitoring personnel processing activities," said Capt. Ruth Afiesimama, 325th Force Support Squadron manpower and personnel flight commander and PDF officer in charge.

The medical team ensured deployers were up to date with everything medically required for the mock deployment such as being current on all vaccinations and other medical requirements.

"The patients on the PDF line were shocked that we were actually giving shots and drawing blood right then and there," said Staff Sgt. Monique Price, 325th Medical Operations Squadron aerospace medical technician and NCO in charge of allergy immunization clinic. "These exercises are always a learning experience. We figure out what process is not working well, and we fix them for the next time."

Exercises are a learning experience for everyone involved.

"This exercise benefited the medical group because there were some exercise deployers that are actually deploying in the near future," said Price. "We were able to get their records cleared and vaccinate them. Now when the time comes, most of them will be already taken care of. And, it benefits the deployers because they are getting care."

The deployers go through the processing line at the clinic and then again on the PDF. This ensures that everyone is seen by medical staff.

During the exercise, 325th MDG staff saw a total of approximately 315 patients.

"Deployers were able to complete all pre-deployment medical requirements within the same day, which made them wartime ready on the spot," Rountree said. "It's important that we demonstrate our capability real-world and in exercises. Especially since, the mission has changed. It's imperative that we demonstrate our capability more often.

"I learned during this exercise that we are a small piece to a giant machine," added Rountree. "We must all come together in order to make that machine work properly. Not one piece is its own entity. Our mission has changed, yes, but we are to remain resilient and press like normal, as long as we do that, we will always come out on top."