Corpsman Up! Docs Keep Marines Battle-ready

[thedrifter]

Corpsman Up! Docs Keep Marines Battle-ready
1st Marine Logistic Group Public Affairs
Story by Pfc. Jerrick J. Griffin
Date: 06.23.2009
Posted: 06.23.2009 12:15


MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Many things end up broken in one way or another, but someone is usually around to fix the problem. Vehicles have mechanics, sinks have plumbers and Marines have corpsmen.

The corpsmen with Combat Logistics Regiment 17's Regimental Aid Station make sure all aches and pains are tended to.

A typical day starts around 7:30 a.m. As soon as the RAS opens, sick-call patients flood the door like water through a crack in a dam, and the room fills with a sea of desert Marine pattern camouflage utilities.

"It gets crazy in here during sick-call hour, especially on Mondays," said Seaman Michael Delmundo, a hospital corpsman with RAS, CLR-17, 1st Marine Logistics Group. "It's a rush, but we manage to get them out of here in a timely manner," said Delmundo, 21, from San Jose, Calif.

The RAS supports many operational and deploying elements as well as any training events on Camp Pendleton. It also supports March Air Force Base in Riverside, Calif., and Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz.

On a daily basis the RAS corpsmen care for approximately 60 to 100 people. Whether it's sick-call, appointments, check-ins or check-outs, they handle it all.

"It's a very high-tempo environment here," said Chief Petty Officer Ronald Frazier, leading chief petty officer for RAS, CLR-17, 1st MLG. "The corpsmen are always busy and challenged on a day-to-day basis," added Frazier, 37, from Houston.

After the rush of sick call patients, the work is not yet done. There are still appointments. Although there aren't many appointments, these patients require more time for tests and screening.

"The Sailors are doing a good job with improving medical readiness," said Lt. Cmdr. Ronald Willy, a medical officer with RAS, CLR-17, 1st MLG. "They are very motivated and efficient," said Willy, 42, from Kokomo, Ind.

When corpsmen administer vaccinations to service members, the atmosphere in the whole room changes as lucky patients watch the preparation of the needle. There's a sigh of relief after the shot is over; the entire process takes less than a minute, unless the patient is returning from a deployment or missed a few vaccinations. Some of the vaccinations given at the RAS are hepatitis A and B, influenza and tetanus.

Toward the end of the day, the last of the patients are sent on their way and the corpsmen at the RAS clean and prepare the building for another day of swarming patients.

Ellie

[DocGreek]

Probably a silly question, but...don't those Marines have a Battalion Aid Station that's closer to their unit??...just wondered!....DOC