Airmen sharpen self aid, buddy care skills

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Nicholas Stowers
  • Det. 6, Air Force News Agency
LAJES FIELD, Azores (AFNEWS) --  Self aid and buddy care is an Air Force requirement that begins in basic training. 

The class covers basic first aid and expands to more advanced life saving skills. Airmen also learn to use battlefield tools such as the combat action tourniquet, Israeli bandage, and quick clot -- tools that play a critical role in saving lives down range.  Airmen are required to take a refresher course every two years and before deploying.

"When we're in a situation where our adrenaline's going and we can't think straight, we revert back to the things that we've practiced often, and we're able to do them," said Master Sgt. Lita Beard, the Lajes medical readiness NCO.  

The courses here have two parts. An online introduction to life saving techniques is followed by an introduction to the tools Airmen will have at their disposal down range. Airmen take a written test to evaluate their understanding of the material, then move in to the classroom for hands-on training.

The combination of refresher courses and information provided in the Airmen's manual and pre-deployment training could be the key to Airmen returning home safely.

"Ninety-eight percent of the patients that come to Balad theater hospital or other theater hospitals in Afghanistan go home because they got to Balad with a pulse," Sergeant Beard said. "If we don't do self aid-buddy care, our buddies don't make it to Balad with a pulse, and they don't make it home." 

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