Aeromedical teams, ops crews, volunteers rally to return injured vets home Published Jan. 21, 2009 By Staff Sgt. Christie Putz 375th Airlift Wing Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Most of the attention surrounding the presidential inauguration this week has been centered around the nation's capitol, but support of the ceremonies required a much farther reach. Because of the influx of people to the capitol region, and the effect it had on the area's services, Scott Air Force Base took on an increased role in ensuring wounded servicemembers were returned home. "Anytime that many people are expected in a city, all medical personnel are on standby in the event of any sort of disaster," said Jenny Juenger, 375th Medical Group Aeromedical Staging Facility nurse. With the unavailability of the 779th Medical Group ASF at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., for the week surrounding the inauguration date, Scott medical teams saw an increase in the number of patients coming into the facility. Each aeromedical mission to Scott averaged 20 patients this week, versus the recent average of five to 10, said 1st Lt. Frank Brisendine, 375th ASF operations officer in charge. The usual route for patients returning to the states from overseas includes a stop first at Andrews before continuing westward to Scott and then to bases on the west coast. Servicemembers with severe injuries requiring intensive care often stay at Andrews, as well as those patients returning to many destinations east of Scott. This was not the case for many this week. On Friday, the plane made the usual stop at Andrews. However, only patients requiring one-on-one patient care were offloaded and taken directly to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. All others remained onboard for their next stop at Scott. This was the case for all missions this week, except Tuesday when the plane was unable to land in the area at all due to restricted airspace for Inauguration Day. "Making sure patients still get out in a timely manner is of the utmost importance," said the lieutenant. "We didn't want to stop that movement at all, so we at Scott stepped up ... to keep it going in the normal fashion it should be going." Taking care of patients Army Pfc. Andrew Bradley, an infantryman with the 86th Airborne Division, was one of the many patients who would have normally stopped at Andrews due to the severity of his injuries. Less than a week before arriving at Scott, Private Bradley was driving in a convoy through Sadr City, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He sustained severe injuries as a result of the blast, requiring a partial amputation of his right leg below the knee. "(The medical personnel) have done their best to keep me comfortable," he said, adding that the medical staff was very attentive and constantly checking on his condition. "Some of the patients are coming from bases where there's nothing but a wire fence, and then we're the first ones they see in the states," said Staff Sgt. Matthew Blankenship, 375th ASF medical technician. "So it's very important for us to get them settled and make them feel comfortable." This became even more important this week as adjusted flying routes tacked on additional hours to patient travel time. In response, countless people stepped up to lend a hand in various ways. "The outpouring of support we have received from the base and the community has been incredible," said Col. Diane Ritter, 375th Medical Group commander. "We couldn't do nearly this much without their help. Everything we do here truly is a joint effort." Friends of the medical staff, in coordination with the clinic nutritionist, volunteered to prepare home-cooked meals for the patients. Several distinguished visitors, including local mayors and community leaders, stopped by to show their support and concern. "A lot of people don't know about us because we're sort of tucked away and a lot of what we do goes unseen by most on the base," said Lieutenant Brisendine. "But once people realize what we are doing, the majority of people are eager to help." Personnel from several organizations around base also volunteered to help carry litter patients from the plane to the bus for transport to the facility, and then later back onto the aircraft taking them to their final destinations. These volunteers became an integral part of the team on days with heavy flying schedules because they were able to relieve some duties from the medical staff, allowing them to fill roles where they are needed most - either on the mission in a medical role or at the ASF caring for patients. "Typically we have one mission that comes in, and then two missions going out," said Col. Timothy Sipes, 375th Operations Group deputy commander. "This week we've had roughly double the outbound missions to accommodate the higher number of patients." In addition to the stops the Scott missions typically fly to, additional missions were added to cover some stops the Andrews detachment would have normally made, such as Virginia, New York and Georgia. Covering both of these mission loads required double the aircraft, double the aircrew and, in order to continue patient care during transit, double the medical staff. The in-flight medical staff comes from the 775th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Flight at Scott, which has detachments at both Andrews and Travis Air Force Bases. This total force team is pulled from active-duty, Guard and Reserve units throughout the nation, with their primary mission being the continuance of the Global War on Terror AE missions. The unit moves on average 5,500 patients per year and has moved more than 18,000 patients since the unit's inception in 2005.