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SMSgt Mike Ziegler

Posted on: August 3rd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

Jim,

It was good talking with you earlier today and wanted to reiterate the importance of the training JTM provides when I learned of a mission one of my guys hacked last night.  Bullets flying both ways to get in and pick up a double leg amputee, his pulse was lost enroute in which one of my guys and a Moody J performed CPR, established an IO, pumped fluids, gave blood and bringing the guy back.  He is currently in the hospital and going to make it.  All the Docs in the hospital said these guys saved this guys life and were thoroughly impressed with their work through the handover.  Bad Ass!

Thanks Jim

ZR

SMSgt Mike Ziegler

USAF Pararescue Team

308 RQS Operations Superintendent

Kristen Cuciti, NREMT Paramedic

Posted on: August 3rd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

To whom it May Concern,

I recently had the amazing honor to attend a military medic class. Not just any class, but an Intermediate Tactical Medicine class. Why was this so amazing? Because I don’t have one iota of military experience anywhere in my body. I take that back, I grew up in the Air Force. However the only thing I was allowed to do was buy items in the BX. So…no experience.

How I came to be a part of this class is a fairly long, complicated story. The short version is this: I needed the 48-hour refresher course for the National Registry, and I landed at JTM.

JTM is housed in Las Vegas. It is a two-week course (11 days) that encompasses the alphabet soup of EMS, and beyond. It was founded by James Mitchell, and has many wonderful teachers. When I was first communicating with the staff via e-mail, I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting myself into. Clothes that can be ruined? Be prepared to get dirty and have more fun then you could ever imagine? The military? Needless to say, I had some slight concerns. But I made it through the fire academy, so I figured I could do this.

My journey began early the first Monday. I walked into a room where almost everyone was wearing fatigues. I glance down at my jeans and an old job shirt from a former department. I was very much underdressed. I had no flack vest, helmet, or M-4. Darn it! And it was all men, and one other woman. No different than the firehouse.

We were very quickly split into groups. I waited to go last so I wouldn’t steal someone’s spot. I eventually wandered over to the group that was short one man (or in my case, woman). Team Coronado. My new home away from home. How would I be received? Would they be upset that they got stuck with the civilian? Or a woman? I was the only one in my group, and the only one in my company. I promised myself I would keep up and try my best.

JTM did a wonderful job of keeping you interested in the material. They brought in experts, and experience. I heard real stories of battlefield medicine. I listened to a retired EOD agent tells his story of stepping on an IED. I watched a pediatric emergency physician’s slides and videos on pediatric trauma. I learned the difference between what we as civilian medics practice versus what military medics practice.   (I am aware that there are many different kinds of medical personnel in the military-IDC’s, PJ’s, FMF and NSW Corpsmen, etc. I use the term ‘medic’ loosely.) I soaked everything in, as I knew nothing about battlefield medicine. I took a lot of notes, and asked a lot of questions. When a term was used I didn’t know, I leaned into my team and asked what it meant. God bless those guys, they were great. Not to mention patient. I had to learn a whole new language in a short amount of time.

After a few days, it became very apparent that I knew nothing about trauma. This was a big blow to my ego. I felt like I had this market cornered. After all, I saw plenty of trauma as a medic at one of my old departments. Wrong. I killed my first patient, a young soldier with an open femur fracture. I was just not prepared for that.

I was given blacked out goggles and told to put them on. I was lead to a location, and given a story. ‘Your convoy was hit with an IED. You’re the only medic around, help is five minutes away. When you take off the blindfold, your scenario will begin.’ I whipped off my blindfold and spun around to a van behind me. Someone began screaming. I hopped into the van (I know now I should have watched for a secondary device-see, I learned) and was greeted by a soldier with blood squirting out of an open femur fracture on his right leg. I asked for gloves, and was given a look by the proctor. I leaned over my patient, and put direct pressure on his wound. I forgot about kneeling on the femoral artery, and I forgot about the tourniquet. My patient exsanguinated in no time. Dead. I was the only one who managed to kill him. And I looked like I had murdered someone.

A side note: the moulage in this class was absolutely phenomenal. Arterial bleeds, open fractures, victims who knew how to act. It was as realistic as it could be. JTM also brought in an amazing group known as Amputees in Action, which is based in the UK. These men and women are also actors. One of which was a bilateral below the knee amputee. This was not known until the soldiers were running through a scenario in the dark. They would do a quick hands-on assessment, and it never failed. Someone would yell ‘He’s got no legs!’ The actor stayed in character until ‘EndEx’ was called. It was a great learning experience.

At the end of the first week we took part in something called ‘The Box of Death’. I worried about this exercise all week. I’m not even going to tell you what I envisioned. None of it was good. I voiced my worry to two members of my team. What if I am totally unprepared-and totally horrible-at this? “Listen, Kris’, I was told. ‘You are over thinking this way too much. Just go out and have fun.’ Fun? In the Box of Death? I think not…

I was given a large paintball gun (note I have never been paintballing) and a pair of fatigues. Now I kind of blended in. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail and put on an old department blue ball cap. No…definitely did not blend in. There were six stations situated around a waist-high plywood box about six feet big. There were eight teams. Each team spent two times in the box, shooting at the classmates. The purpose of this exercise was care under fire. We were to rescue our victims while we were being shot at. This is when two rules came into play, rules I had made fun of when I first heard them. 1-Return fire. 2-Direct casualty to return fire if able to do so. I had turned to one of my team members and asked if it was legit. ‘Of course’, he said. ‘The best medicine is fire superiority.’ I shook off the memory, listened to one of the proctors, and realized I haven’t shot any kind of gun (except of the Nerf variety) since I was 12. Oh boy.

‘GO!’ I ran in a crouch to my first patient, trying to dodge paintballs. I was the medic for this first station. What did I do? I reached my patient, put my gun behind my back, and started treatment. I was shot in the chest 2 seconds later. Kill shot…dead since I had no body armor. I lay on the ground until I was told to get up. I got shot again. So far, this was not going well. Before we started the next station, I was reminded to ’Get off the X!! Fire, treat uncontrolled hemorrhage, communicate, and keep moving. Think you can remember that?!’ ‘Umm…I will try!’ ‘Then GO!’ As I ran into the second station, it just clicked. I lay on the trigger, and I didn’t let up. I provided enough cover so my partner was able to move the patient. We didn’t die! Then, it became fun. I shot everyone and everything. I had to be reminded to treat my patients. I had an absolute blast. After the exercise, I started to really appreciate what these guys go through. If these were real bullets, I would have died three times. If these were real bullets, would I have the nerve to run in there and rescue my comrades? To see them missing a limb or eviscerated, and be calm enough to treat them? In my experience, I have never had to tell someone with a broken ankle to keep shooting. I have never had to triage a mass amount of people with such severe injuries. I have never had to treat someone with just what I backpacked in. I had a whole ambulance always a few yards away. It was a complete eye opener for me.

During the second week, each day began with marksmanship skills for the rest of the class. I sat and learned by watching and listening. There was more classroom instruction, but the second week focused mainly on practical learning. I was not able to participate in some of the exercises this week (if it involved live-fire training), but I was allowed to watch all of them. I watched how the two weeks of learning came together. I watched the men who had been in similar situations and saw how they reacted. Every scenario was taken seriously by the participants, and I learned much by watching them work through it.

One of the final scenarios, which were class-wide, was called The SUCK (I really can’t make that up). It involved paintballs, so I was able to participate. This was an amazing scenario to finish up the week, and one I am proud to say I completed. I was even more proud when a member from another team told me I did great the last couple of weeks. I won’t divulge the details. A company has to keep their secrets for future participants.

In this class, I met a wide variety of people, and took away more than I could have ever imagined. I learned about evidence-based medicine, permissive hypotension, and care under fire (I recommend you learn these as well). I was taught by people who had first-hand knowledge. I watched videos and saw pictures I never would have seen otherwise. I met people I would have never known, and made some new friends.   Most importantly, I gained the experience of a lifetime. And I just may do it again two years from now.

Kristen Cuciti, NREMT Paramedic

Jill Jensen, RN, NREMT-P

Posted on: August 3rd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

I didn’t know what to expect from the Tactical Care and Casualty Course, knowing I had plenty of medical experience and very little tactical knowledge. I was unsure how they would come together, but quickly learned it gives you the knowledge and expectation of how to manage a scene that involves caring for the injured while dealing with threatening acts of violence. Any scene today can quickly become violent and with this course it gives you the confidence and ability to continue to get the job done. Whenever a scene becomes chaotic and threatening, tunnel vision quickly closes in; however TCCC helps to maintain safety, order, and functionality to an individual. Even though, it is adapted for military personnel, the concepts are still applicable to the civilian workplace. I highly recommend TCCC.

Jill Jensen, RN, NREMT-P

Nick Lopes

Posted on: August 3rd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

Hi JTM,

I wanted to say thank you for all the help you have provided throughout the EMT-B course. The course was perfect for someone like myself with such a busy schedule. The information both online and via textbook was presented in a seamless fashion which made retaining the information that much easier. I would also like to let you know how much I appreciate the quick responses to any questions or concerns I may have had during the course. Your extensive knowledge base and experience, attention to detail, and student support was very impressive.

The practical portion of the course was very informative, and far exceeded any expectation I had. The fact that our class was able to train in such a realistic environment alongside military medics added to the overall positive experience I had. I feel that our class was lucky to have had such a great opportunity to be exposed to more scenarios than the typical EMT-B trainee. If you would convey my thanks to the training staff I would greatly appreciate it.

Sincerely, 

Nick Lopes

Lead Helicopter Pilot

Nevada Division of Forestry

Elissa Wahl, Las Vegas resident

Posted on: August 3rd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

Dear Mr. Mitchell,

My name is Elissa Wahl, and I have been a member of the Las Vegas community for just over 11 years now. I am both a stay-at-home homeschooling mom and an activist within the community. My gun experience is somewhat new (9 mo. or so). I was recently blessed to be able to take a course taught by your instructors and I wanted to take a moment to send you my feedback.

I don’t know if I could ever capture in words the feelings I had when I left this course. I felt empowered enough that if the bad guy came to my house today; I’d be able to save my family and myself. I could “ do this”! I also left half in love with your instructor, because he was sooooooo positive about our efforts, and soooo affirmative. I understand that this is a huge aspect of training, and I am so happy to tell you your instructor is right on!

Along with the “high” feeling, came a few other things: The knowledge that I need more training and the relief of understanding the laws and application of the laws (pertaining to shooting the bad guy).

In the ensuing time since I took the class, I have taken a lot of time to read on training, “killing”, and mentalities and I can’t help but be overwhelmed with gratitude for your class and instructor. This wasn’t just some course that taught us book knowledge and sent us on our way. This was real life knowledge and practice, no, it was training. The training aspect was unbelievable, and I believe otherwise unobtainable. This training should be taught to all policemen, all military, it should be employed far and wide. I was saddened to learn this is not the case.

If I have not been clear enough, I’ll re-state, this class was wonderful. It was economically very feasible, it was very understandable, and it included the most impressive training, which I believe will forever impact my life.

I sincerely thank you and your team for your dedication, passion, and ability to reach people with this class. Please keep it up!

Sincerely,

Elissa Wahl, Las Vegas resident

Capt. C.J. Watt

Posted on: August 2nd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

Letter of Appreciation/JTM,

Please accept my sincere gratitude for your outstanding support of the Marines and Sailor of Supporting Arms Liaison Team Delta aboard your facility. Your logistical support before and during the conduct of the Advanced Ground Tactics Course was instrumental in the successful training of the members of our Unit. The periods of instruction and practical application phases of the course greatly enhanced the our ability to conduct the mission, support the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) in it’s upcoming deployment, and enhance it’s overall ability to fight the enemy and conduct life-saving medical practices while under fire. The invaluable knowledge and life-saving techniques taught by your instructors were enthusiastically received and will no dougtedly be used to save lives on future battlefields.

Please accept this Letter of Appreciation and my sincere thanks for the tremendous job that your team did. Our thanks extend to your entire staff for your obvious and sincere passion to impart this knowledge upon our organization. Semper Fidelis.

Capt. C.J. Watt, Officer in Charge, 1st Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company
United States Marine Corps

LEE W. SHAFFER, CMSgt, USAF

Posted on: August 2nd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

Jim,

Please feel free to forward to your team.

As my 30 years of service to our nation and our noble profession is rapidly coming to a close…I want to take a moment and thank you and your amazing team of JTM professionals.

I know I’ve said this to you countless times, but your course is without a doubt the best paramedic refresher I’ve ever attended in my now 30 years of service as a USAF Pararescueman.

From my perspective as the USAF Pararescue Career Field Manager and one who has attended JTM 4 times in the last 10 years; the outstanding service that you and your team provide to our nations great warriors, is without equal.    The classroom instruction, the practical exercises, and the combat/humanitarian scenarios are extremely relevant to today’s fight.  Through the years, you and your team have adapted rapidly to the ever-changing combat and humanitarian medical/rescue/combat environment.  Not an easy task, but one that’s extremely important in order to prepare those warriors who attend your course and deploy downrange for the fight today and in the future.

On a personal note, I want to thank you for the “Batman’s Last Ride” team photo, and for sending me off that last day after our final awesome “urban” scenario with very kind words and a standing ovation from you, your team, and the men I trained with…that was HUGE, and I was deeply, deeply touched.  As I left you all and made my way to the airport, I’m not ashamed to admit, my eyes leaked.  That was a phenomenal send off and was a great, GREAT final TDY to end my career.

My best to you and your All-Star team…. today and in the future,

LEE W. SHAFFER, CMSgt, USAF
Pararescue Career Field Manager
Air Force Dive Program Manager
Special Operations and Personnel Recovery Division
HQ USAF/A3O-AS, Pentagon

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Posted on: July 23rd, 2014 by Lonnie Johnson No Comments

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