Page 73 - RADC 2020

Diaries of a Troop Commander Medical Reception Station 30 Squadron 1 Armoured Medical Regiment
Maj E Schlesinger
Firstly, what actually is a Dental Officer Troop Commander and what do they do? This was a question I asked myself a lot in my first year at 1 Armoured Medical Regiment. MRS – what’s that? Bulldog – isn’t that an animal? Med modules – are they exams?
First week back in January 2020, we watched as the sea freight for the BATUS exercises Prairie Storm 1 & 2 were set
to be loaded into containers and sent to Marchwood, Southampton for shipping. It was a good feeling to see that part of the planning ‘set sail’ and put into perspective that the 3 months we had left to complete our training would go by quickly. This meant all of the infrastructure items – tents, ward beds, tables, paperwork, etc for our Medical Receptions Station (MRS) were gone. No more changes, no last minute FMed to add in – if we wanted to do that then it would likely have to fit in personal kit.
As more information came through to
us we found that we were to be located forward of the main camp, out on the Prairie, albeit in an area of semi-protective gabion walls. This meant our power plan and layout would need to be adjusted. Thankfully, communication lines with people stationed in BATUS had already been established
and we were able to identify that they could supply some of the kit we hadn’t packed on sea freight.
Early March, we had completed the MATTs required for our troops to conduct the exercise and the various medical modules were stocked and packed according to a precise plan. The modules range from a ‘grab and go’ style medic Bergen with the basic equipment required to stabilise bleeding or suspected fractures and such like. Then there is the 300 Module which is held with a Pre Hospital Treatment Team (PHTT) – the MRS has two of these and as such can treat two medical emergencies at any one time. Among other modules there is also a pharmacy module,
doctor’s Bergen and ambulance modules. All the modules contain kit with expiry dates, hence they have to be packed methodically and clear records of expiries kept to hand for resupply purposes.
As the news of the COVID-19 outbreak began to break, it became apparent that the BATUS exercise was likely to be cancelled. Our focus quickly shifted to preparation
for a medical response to coronavirus in
the UK. The Combat Med Technicians
and Nurses conducted a 2 week intensive training package focusing on care of the elderly, prolonged respiratory distress, and ward care – to name but a few of the areas covered. Emphasising to the CMTs that the potential population at risk was far from the population they were traditionally taught about. The CMTs engaged throughout the package – hungry for the knowledge that might better prepare them for potentially helping within the NHS. We were split into teams – either 6 people forming a PHTT
or a pool of CMTs trained and able to help bolster numbers on hospital wards. We were given a packing list and told to prepare for potentially 6 months in an unknown location. The enthusiasm was palpable and at the end of the package, people were ready to go out and make a difference.
The help of teams from 1 Armoured Medical Regiment was not immediately called upon. However, my troop commanding was put to the test when
the Operations Officer requested a team
to assure a training course in Edgebaston. Within 12 hours, a PHTT team had been recalled to Tidworth camp – some travelling through the night from across the country. We met in the ops room at 0600 and
the team were on-site in Edgebaston Cricket Ground later that morning. They witnessed first-hand the training from Boots Pharmaceutical Company for training military personnel in how to effectively perform the Swab Test required to identify if someone
is suspected of COVID-19. Those on the
course would then be able to go away and train others how to do the same and help the country to reach the target of 100k tests per day.
I learnt an important lesson in troop commanding during the PHTT visit to Edgebaston – that some information can only be gathered once on-site and though nice to know the ins and outs before a team departs camp, this is not always possible – or necessary.
In the month following this, the troop settled into a distance learning routine. Morning video conferencing calls have been successfully used to further clinical training and cover elements of basic soldiering.
I checked in with the troop daily but it is certainly not the same as seeing them in person. It is very different from the hands-on learning experience we have previously been afforded.
Appreciative of the time and space that this distance learning package has created, there is now a palpable desire to return to work, to find our new normal and continue in the vocation we have chosen. To serve, to treat, to care for people. Quite what this will look like is starting to form but perhaps we can take forward much of what COVID-19 has forced us to develop in a positive way.
RADC BULLETIN 2020 71