Reader Feedback: November 2021

Here’s to Army Flight Medics

Thank you for a job well done in telling the story of how the Army medevac flight medic program was changed (July 2021 issue). Aside from the initial Mabry study, this is the first piece I have seen that credits the Army National Guard for being the catalyst and proponent to change the Army flight medicine program.

I was the commander of Charlie Company, 1-168 on the Afghanistan deployment some have dubbed the “California Experience.” It was a challenging endeavor, but a deployment in which all the pieces (people, skill sets, passion, and knowledge of how to document change) were present.

I even argued our success at a medevac conference in Florida after the deployment—our anecdotal urging to the audience for change in the medic standards and heavy HH-60 program was rebuffed. Thankfully the Mabry study and reports followed using the data from the Company C, 1-168th Dustoff OEF 09-11 deployment.

My journey started with an Army National Guard medevac deployment with the 1159th Medical Company (N.H./Md. unit), the last true standalone medevac Dustoff unit under a medical evacuation battalion. While there medevac was reorganized under aviation battalions, and even then the Army combat health system knew there was something extra about what National Guard flight paramedics brought to the table.

A lot of back stories, and one significant story your piece and efforts appropriately credit. Thank you again.

—LTC Daniel Anderson, Deputy Commander, 1106th TASMG, California Army National Guard

I enjoyed reading about the flight paramedic and critical care training that has finally come to our young enlisted men and women. I spent my career of 32 years-plus as an EMT, paramedic, RN, flight critical care paramedic, and rescue captain-firefighter, and I enjoyed being part of training newly enlisted medics. I hope to see ALS/critical care become the gold standard on board all rescue aircraft and extended to the Coast Guard as well. Long overdue for the world’s best military!

—Bill Ratliff