E-Mail from Iraq -

GREETINGS FROM IRAQ.

  Hello, my name is SPC Jesse Woods.  I had gone through your rescue training course at Ft. Richardson, AK.  I am now five months in my deployment and I have had to use the training I have learned from your team and AIT.  I had three casualties from an EFP blast that hit my patrol one night.  I had lost a soldier en-route to the CSH.  The other two are said to have a 100% recovery.  Without the training I had gone through with your team I do feel that the outcome of that night would have been different and not in a good way.  Your tactical training prepared me for the reality of combat and treating casualties.  I was focused and confident that night but because of variables that I could not control we ended up with a death.  Since then I have excelled in furthering my medical knowledge and treatment skills here, but again without your tactical training class I know that I would have been unprepared for the life of a combat medic.  I have passed on some of the training to my guys and I have found that they feel more confident in their abilities as CLS providers.  Thanks again for everything and I hope everything is well with RTI team, and yes even Scooter.  Hahaha.

What I have seen or done as a combat medic there is probably that one out of five injuries that is a text book wound which is a no brainer to treat but the other ones I have to go through my mind and all the training to assess the best possible route to take for 100% patient management and that is where your training comes into play. You teach in a way that the method of the madness is easy to see. You bring a reality to it that we as students can not fully understand until we are here doing it in combat. When it does happen though, the shock of the situation or situations wont debilitate or actions because of the prior experience through you and the RTI team. Thanks again for the information and the support. Have a good one

SPC WOODS