Page 20 - Chiron Calling Autum 2021/Spring 2022

Ex
CHIRON
CERTIFY
by Capt Karen Pettit
In June 2021 a team from 1st Military Working Dog Regiment (1 MWD Regt) Veterinary
Clinic deployed on Ex CHIRON CERTIFY with 22 Field Hospital (Fd Hosp). The aim of this biennial exercise is to assure the Fd Hosp as it prepares to be held at Readiness for Contingency. Over the course
of four weeks the Fd Hosp was progressively assessed - initially
as the smaller, more mobile, Role
2 Forward and Basic capabilities, building to the full CBR protected NABBER Role 3 Fd Hosp. This would be the first time RAVC personnel were to deploy on such an exercise alongside their medical counterparts.
From the 14 – 24 June, the 1MWD Regt Vet Clinic team, consisting
of the Senior Veterinary Officer (SVO), a clinical Veterinary Officer (VO), the Hospital Manager (HM) and two Veterinary Technicians (VTs) deployed to Barton Stacey Training Area to establish and operate the Role 2 Enhanced Veterinary Treatment Facility in close proximity to the Fd Hosp. The VO and VTs formed the exercising group, while the SVO and HM took on an observer-mentor role. The
primary aim of the exercise from our perspective was to mature inter-operability with our medical colleagues and to develop our own SOPs. This was also an opportunity to set up and trial the infrastructure of the Veterinary Treatment
Facility (VTF), which is still under development.
Over the first two days, the team built the VTF which consisted of
a series of 12x12 tents including a theatre, prep and diagnostic imaging area, ward, lab and reception. The veterinary equipment was set up
in full, with assistance from 1MWD Regt REME LAD. Once the VTF
was fully established, the team then worked through a series of veterinary scenarios, where a veterinary casualty’s journey was tracked from forward MEDEVAC to the VTF through to discharge or theoretical STRATEVAC to the Firm Base. This facilitated an examination of the process in real time and identified a number of key points where the VTF and Fd Hosp would interact closely
- from receiving a veterinary patient from an ambulance exchange point, to requesting use of the hospitals advanced imaging modalities
(e.g. CT scanner) to ultimately arranging for further MEDEVAC
or STRATEVAC of the patient. Throughout the exercise the Fd Hosp also provided support to the VTF in several other areas, including power and water supply and waste disposal.
The VTF was also host to a steady stream of visitors from the Fd Hosp throughout the Exercise who were intrigued by the capability and wanted to understand what we
do and how. Visitors ranged from clinical personnel who were keen
to “compare notes” and discuss
the clinical specifics of managing
a veterinary patient to a variety of command and support staff who offered insight into their own area
of expertise and how it could be
best applied to the VTF. A particular crowd-pleaser throughout the exercise was K9 Diesel, an interactive full-body Military Working Dog (MWD) casualty simulator. Visitors could practise conducting veterinary procedures with the benefit of
(very vocal!) patient feedback.
In the absence of real MWDs, K9 Diesel proved an excellent tool in explaining anatomical landmarks and other veterinary-specific nuances when speaking to medical colleagues. The exercise was also host to a number of high-profile visitors throughout the time the Vet Clinic team were deployed, including Comd 2 Med Bde, who spent some time visiting the VTF and speaking to the team about their experience.
After ten days, the team repacked the veterinary equipment and dissembled the tentage for return to St. George’s Barracks. There
was much to take away from the experience, from refining our own capability to understanding how we can best work collaboratively with our medical colleagues, not to mention being privy to a tour of the NABBER hospital. Although a lot of questions were answered, many more were asked by the end of the Exercise. The clinic looks forward to continuing to work with the Fd Hosps in future to further improve our interoperability and ultimately our deployed veterinary care capability.
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