RAF teams take part in medical demonstrations

6 hours ago

News image — Tactical Medical Wing carried out a series of exercises in a hangar at RAF Brize Norton

BBC Soldiers carry a patient on a stretcher inside the hangar. — Tactical Medical Wing carried out a series of exercises in a hangar at RAF Brize Norton

Royal Air Force (RAF) medics have taken part in a public demonstration of their specialist skills.

Tactical Medical Wing (TMW), the force's deployable specialist medical support, carried out a series of exercises in a hangar at RAF Brize Norton on Tuesday.

Wing Cdr Rosie Barrow, the officer commanding TMW, told the BBC: "In the last month the guys have done some incredible missions just bringing people home to the UK."

About 200 personnel took part in the training drills, which featured an operation on a soldier injured in battle, and on another suffering from appendicitis.

Four soldiers gather around a stretcher. — About 200 personnel took part in the training drills

Wing Cdr Rosie Barrow: "We consider this to be just one of the fundamental components of the moral component of the fighting force.

"Just knowing that somebody is in watch and on guard here 24-7-365, and that no matter where you are we'll come for you, I think that's absolutely essential for helping people to go away [on operations] in the first place."

A patient is carried onto a plane. — TMW supports operations at home and overseas

TMW supports operations at home and overseas and also trains personnel from the RAF and other services sent out to deliver healthcare as part of military operations.

Wing Cdr Rosie Barrow added: "At the moment, operations are absolutely all over the globe, and that does bring an added layer of complexity."

Medics operate on a patient, which is in fact a dummy. — The wing recently marked 30 years of distinguished service

Gp Capt Becky Woolley said: "Going up into the air places demands on the body that are very different to being down on the ground.

"It changes the science, the physiology of the patient, and it means that we've got to change the clinical care that we give so that no harm is done to that patient.

"We also have to be able to look after these patients for a prolonged period of time. There can be delays, there can be problems accessing them depending where they are in the world.

"So it's not just the environment that the patient goes into, it's the demands that we place on our teams. We've got to make sure that they're able to adjust and rest so that they can deliver the best care that they need to that patient as well."

In April TMW marked 30 years of distinguished service.