Photo By Petty Officer 3rd Class Connor Loessin | NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Feb. 13, 2017) -- Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Ryan Shortridge,...... read more read more
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While doctors, nurses, and corpsmen from USS Gerald R. Ford’s (CVN 78) medical team are busy establishing airways and trying to get bleeding under control, a crew of multifaceted Sailors stands patiently in the corner, waiting to get their cue to spring into action.
Who are these Sailors? They are the stretcher bearers.
“Stretcher bearers are important because they assist the medical department in the safe and timely transport of patients,” said Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Jessica Scott. “They also act as first responders on scene and are able to render lifesaving initial interventions and prevent further injuries.”
During drills and actual scenarios, damage control central assigns a team to respond to casualties varying from broken bones to arterial bleeding.
“During GQ we have four stretcher bearers assigned to each repair locker who are prepared to treat any casualty in their area of responsibility (AOR) while the rest of the crew is simultaneously trying to save the ship,” said Scott. “There are stretcher bearers inside each of the six battle dressing stations (BDS) as well as those who assist the providers.”
Although every Sailor can be a stretcher bearer, the select Sailors assigned to forward, aft, main and flight-deck BDS aboard Ford can be more than an extra set of hands.
“I believe that training as a stretcher bearer is important because, when it comes down to it, if there is ever a real casualty we need to know what to do,” said Ordnanceman Airmen Desiree Bradley, a forward BDS stretcher bearer. “Being able to save someone’s life needs to be second nature. With little time to spare people depend on us to be at the ready. If we are knowledgeable about what we are doing, we can help get people to medical for the right treatment.”
With doctors and corpsmen tending to critical injuries, it is not unlikely that a stretcher bearer would have to perform advanced first-aid, such as establishing an airway, or applying a tourniquet.
"Stretcher bearers provide necessary assistance by knowing exactly what supplies are needed for any casualty and how to properly handle transporting a patient on a stretcher," said Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Abraham Bakongo.
“The biggest benefit of someone that is 310 qualified is the fact they are extensions of [medical]. As a whole, we probably have about 36 medical department personnel. That’s compared to the over 2,500 plus people we have while underway,” said Scott. “Realistically, if there is a casualty anywhere onboard, we would not be the first ones on the scene. Luckily we have personnel with hands-on training who are able to initially assess and treat injured shipmates, which expedites the transport to a higher level of care and could potentially save a life.”
| Date Taken: | 09.04.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 11.13.2017 10:30 |
| Story ID: | 255049 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 28 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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