CPL. AUSTIN LONG/U.S. MARINE CORPS
When an Afghan National Army Soldier is injured by a roadside bomb, surgeons diligently clean the wound, examine it for shrapnel and bandage the injury to prevent infection.
For the Soldier, triage represents a simple procedure and a few days of rehabilitation at Camp Shorabak’s medical clinic, but for the Afghan National Army’s (ANA) 215th Corps, triage training represents years of hard work.
Taking the medical lead
As coalition forces reduce their footprint, responsibility for providing medical care to injured Soldiers belongs to the ANA’s medics and surgeons.
Advancements in battlefield care, the construction of surgical and medical treatment facilities, and the addition of transportation resources have helped the 215 Corps’ medical unit grow in self-sufficiency and effectiveness.
When a Soldier is injured, the first responder is the unit’s field medic, an enlisted Soldier equipped to aid and assess the injury and transfer the patient to a medical facility.
Since 2010, unit medics have received two months of lifesaving training at the Armed Forces Academy of Medical Sciences in Kabul to learn hands-on trauma care techniques for stabilizing injuries on the battlefield. The 215th Corps has more than 150 field medics serving throughout Helmand province, and Sgt. Abdul Qadir Momand is one of them. Momand has been an Army medic for five years and has witnessed the evolution of battlefield care. “I feel great knowing I am helping a casualty and getting him to better care when I am out with a unit on the battlefield,” Momand said.
Performing surgeries
Improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are common sources of battlefield injuries that require surgery. Surgeons can administer care ranging from cleaning shrapnel to saving a limb. Most Army surgeons studied at Kabul Medical University and have years of experience. In 2013, the unit built a surgical ward at Camp Shorabak to treat the wounded.
The design of the surgical ward is rudimentary — a small tent placed inside an old warehouse. But inside, the surgeons have state-of-the-art medical equipment and can conduct simple and complex battlefield surgeries from this location.
The Shorabak Clinic
After surgery, a Soldier is moved to the 215th Corps’ clinic adjacent to the surgical ward at Camp Shorabak. The building is small, but allows medical personnel to treat and monitor approximately 25 patients at a time. The clinic is equipped with an X-ray machine, dental office and pharmacy.
ANA Col. Mohamad Agah, the 215th Corps’ lead surgeon, said he believes the future of the 215th Corps is clear.
Said Agah: “If my medics and medical staff continue doing as well as we have been, we will continue to have success with our patients surviving and returning home or to the fight.”