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to focus primarily on delivering a liaison officer role between the UK and the US deployed force elements from the Forward HQ stance.
Also tasked to mentor a junior MOSG colleague, Captain Stephen Gorniak (RAMC), a UK Environmental Health Officer (EHO) reservist who had no prior experience of working with the US military, or even in a liaison officer capacity, meant that I could productively contribute to developing and supporting him when tasked with
assisting and providing information on how the British Army operates, with oversight of his explanations and interpreting briefs and orders as well as his ability to respond to general questions.
teams, as with this UK three person team, in a physically and mentally demanding fast paced environment, at a distant location, as replicated in this HQ Forward scenario, is essential for MOSG who deploy as augmentees. Although disappointed not to be leading on the PECC, mentoring Captain Gorniak through his first multinational interoperability experience was professionally rewarding.
Major Alison Price
different way of thinking.
The sessions were aided by reference
being given to the atrocities in Nazi Germany concentration camps and the forthcoming visit to Dachau where many of these atrocities took place.
Overall, the evaluation from the sessions was well received and excellent.
Lieutenant Colonel Janet Kelly
Craig Mitchell with his Certificate of Appreciation
Most importantly, the role of a nurse, I believe, is to see the individual and to meet them where they are. Through communication and understanding, I knew that many of the individuals I was working with had been doing extra duties and had been ‘on exercise’ already for two weeks, with very little rest. Much of nursing and much of being a liaison officer are similar: strong leadership skills, knowledge, empathy and compassion. Although not a direct clinical role it was a role I enjoyed, and felt I was good at. My experience during ExSG19 stresses the important multifaceted roles that nurses play within the military.
Sergeant Craig Mitchell
The Gazette QARANC Association 13
By combining my military civilian clinical nursing, midwifery managerial skill sets, knowledge experience I helped to ensure Captain Gorniak achieved a positive involvement effect. The ability to function effectively and add value, as individuals or in small
and and and
Ethical Decision Making
Lieutenant Colonel Janet Kelly gave several ethics presentations to both UK and US personnel. The aim of the presentation was to define basic ethics principles and to briefly explore the historical context of ethics and its relationship with law.
In doing, Lieutenant Colonel Kelly examined the law in relation to ethical principles and to aid understanding linked this into how such knowledge could aid ethical decision making in
MOSG
Our nations play independent roles in the world, yet our purposes are complementary. During Exercise Sabre Guardian 19 (ExSG19) I worked as a liaison officer embedded in the 212th Combat Support Hospital (CSH). In writing this small abstract I found the following definition: A liaison officer is in charge of working with different people, organisations or agencies to help them accomplish a common goal. To do this, the liaison officer must oversee communications and coordinate efforts between these different entities.
Before deploying on ExSG19 I had been working as a Band 7 Public Health Nurse. I believe that as a nurse I was uniquely qualified to work as a liaison officer in order to facilitate and strengthen interoperability between the UK and the US.
Interoperability refers to the ability of different military organisations to conduct joint operations. These organisations can be of different nationalities or different armed services (ground, naval and air forces) or both. Asked by Brigadier Finn, Commander
clinical practice. Lieutenant Colonel Kelly highlighted that making ethical decisions is always challenging. With the aid of real-life stories, she generated a lively debate amongst personnel, which was thought provoking.
With US personnel being present, their contribution added value to discussions since they highlighted a different way to approach ethical dilemmas that enabled UK personnel to experience and engage with a
2 Medical Brigade, what I had observed on ExSG19 I said ‘If you take our uniforms off we all have the same needs and want to achieve the same goal to save lives’.
What skills did I bring to this role as a nurse? As a public health nurse, a great deal of my work is based on focused prevention strategies using skills and resources to form a community collaboration that leverages resources and builds community capacity. We take on expanding leadership roles which involve chairing board meetings and negotiation with stakeholders. Stakeholder engagement is the key component on which public health is based, people will only respond if they are engaged.
As a LO with 212th I had to seek to understand, I had to gain clarity and build an understanding of how the 212th functioned, what its purpose, scope, risks and approaches to working were and where strengths and weaknesses lay. I further wanted to understand what was important for all parties and through this understanding, I could work out how to best serve.