Page 20 - MERCIAN Eagle 2021

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Platoon Sergeant in a Rehab Subunit: A 12 Month Degree in G1
Sgt Lee Barry
Taking over the role of Platoon Sergeant
of the Meeanee Rehabilitation Platoon
was a role that I had no experience in,
but it was a challenge I couldn’t wait to
get into. That said, it did not take long for me to realise that my role was more than that of an ordinary Platoon Sergeant. Not only was I expected to deal with the daily administration and running of the Platoon but also to deal with the complex personal and welfare issues that come with such a diverse array of personnel. Although I had experience of coaching and mentoring from previous roles, both in and outside of the Army, the difficult nature of the rehabilitation role meant I needed to tailor my skills to suit the needs of the personnel under my command.
Commanding soldiers with an array
of injuries means that I had to deal with
not only physical injuries but also soldiers dealing with mental health problems and everything in between. This was bit of a shock, especially when I understood just how common mental ill health is. So, I
got amongst getting myself and the other permanent staff qualified. We completed the Suicide Prevention, Mental Health First Aid and Understanding Mental Health Problems
courses, which set us in good stead when it came to really understanding and helping the soldiers to recover.
was all physical training which lent itself to continued rehabilitation of the soldiers physically and mentally.
Each activity was used to not only rehabilitate the soldiers but to assist with team building and to help them clear head space. During the summer, potentially due
Changing the mindset for many of the soldiers was also difficult; some of them had been injured and downgraded for some time and lacked motivation. However, by using new Physical Training Prescriptions from physiotherapists,
which tell you what
fitness you can do
with injured soldiers,
they started to see
improvement. Coupled
with the amount of
investment being put
into them from the
Battalion, recovery
progress started to
really flourish. We
also planned days
out to complete yoga
on Bournemouth beach, relaxed beach runs with brunch, and a day at the aqua park in the New Forest, where the Platoon spent some time on an inflatable obstacle course consisting of trampolines, monkey bars, slides, hurdles, climbing walls, swings and much more. Although enjoyable, it
to a COVID spike,
we had an increase in poor mental health and invited guest speakers to voice their experiences to the soldiers about survivors of bereavement and a life coach (ex- Mercian Officer Dave Maddock). This helped the soldiers understand the effects on friends and family if the worst was
to happen, as well as showing that discussion about mental health was
normal business.
On the other hand, some discipline was
needed to show soldiers that personal
and physical issues are not an excuse to become unruly. Many of the soldiers had all three: mental health issues; physical injury, and outstanding discipline issues, which is
Changing the mindset for many of the soldiers was also difficult; some of them had been injured and downgraded for some time and lacked motivation
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
Pte Badlands working hard in the pool