State National Guard medics to test at OTC

Medics from the Missouri Army National Guard will converge on the OTC Springfield campus Saturday to participate in field medical scenarios involving the college’s mannequins.

The 50 medics from across the state will be using the college’s group of medical mannequins that can simulate an array of injuries and maladies that the medics will have to treat as if they were in the field treating wounded soldiers.

It is the first time that OTC and the Missouri National Guard have joined efforts in the medical training scenarios. The event will be held in Lincoln Hall from 8 a.m. until noon.

“The scenarios are run to help keep up the medics’ medical skills. The medics are the primary source when to comes to providing care in the field. It’s where the rubber meets the road,” said Sgt. Darren Maute, the readiness noncommissioned officer for the 206^th Area Support Medical Company based in Springfield.

The injuries and wounds the medics will face in the scenarios will run the gamut of what they would see in combat, including blast injuries from improvised explosive devices (IEDs), head injuries, gun shots and Sarin gas. Some of the medics will be seeing these wounds for the first time at the training exercise.

The mannequins have the ability to replicate symptoms through computer software that presents medical personnel with various issues, anything from shortness of breath to heart problems to a drug overdose. The mannequins can bleed, sweat, roll their eyes, even turn blue in places due to lack of oxygen.

Maute said the closest installation to have the type of equipment OTC has is in San Antonio, Tex. He said the National Guard plans to use OTC’s facilities twice a year to train medics.

“This is too good of an opportunity at OTC not to be training here more often. We are really excited,” Maute said.

Michelle Howard, director of the Allied Health Simulation Center, said she has always wanted to work with the National Guard.

“We are a community college and we are here to assist with the education of not only our students but the community as well,” she said.

 Steve Koehler is coordinator of media relations at Ozarks Technical Community College.