Photo By Sgt. Cheryl Madolev | Soldiers assigned to Regional Command-East of the NATO-led KFOR mission, also known as...... read more read more
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The mission of KFOR is to contribute to a safe and secure environment for the communities of Kosovo. There are many missions that KFOR conducts regularly to support this effort, including patrolling the Administrative Boundary Line, providing donations to local community organizations, and conducting routine community engagements via the multinational Liaison Monitoring Teams.
KFOR also maintains a productive and cooperative relationship with the Kosovo Police (KP), in both operational and training environments.
Recently, U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to KFOR’s Regional Command-East, or RC-E, held a Combat Lifesavers course, commonly referred to as CLS, for members of the KP. The training was a five-day event held at Camp Vrelo, Kosovo, Feb, 24-28, 2025.
The Soldiers trained alongside the KP officers on all of the standard CLS skills to include basic vital assessments, chest seals, recognizing symptoms of shock, and how to properly apply a tourniquet. One of the instructors, U.S. Army OR-4 Alyssa Martinez, assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2-162 Infantry Battalion, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oregon Army National Guard, said her favorite parts of the training were the questions from the KP officers and the genuine interest they had in honing the skills.
“These are relatively easy skills to learn, and have been proven to mean the difference between life and death in critical situations,” said Martinez. “All of the people we have had the privilege to teach have come into the class with little to no prior knowledge and you can tell they value the skills they’re learning and how the skills could potentially save the lives of someone.”
With the assistance of a translator, the officers took part in both classroom and hands-on instruction. One of the KP officers, Arben Kryeziu, stated that he learned many new skills from the Soldiers.
“It is very useful information for our daily work,” said Kryeziu. “This class is more advanced than the training we had in the past. One thing I learned that I did not know before was how to use a tourniquet.”
U.S. Army OR-5 Ethan Parke, assigned to Headquarters Company, 2-162 Infantry Battalion, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oregon Army National Guard, is the Medical NCOIC of the battalion and was extremely proud of his Soldiers who were the instructors during this course.
“They have demonstrated a strong commitment to improving their teaching skills and tailoring lessons to the interests of the KP,” said Parke. “Ultimately, the first person on the scene determines whether a casualty lives or dies. Since the KP are likely to be the first responders in any casualty-producing incident, their familiarity with the equipment and principles of Tactical Combat Casualty Care is crucial to enhancing Kosovo’s medical response capabilities.”
| Date Taken: | 03.25.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 03.26.2025 04:38 |
| Story ID: | 493666 |
| Location: | CAMP VRELO, ZZ |
| Web Views: | 31 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, KFOR RC-E Maneuver Battalion medics provide CLS training to KP, by SGT Cheryl Madolev, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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