Published: March 24, 2006
"Rat Pack" Sets The Standard For Medical Evacuation Care in Iraq
By Sergeant Waine D. Haley, 133rd MPAD 
Lt. Edward C.F. Lau, Evacuation Platoon Leader, 690th Medical Company sits in his new creation - M1114 (armored Humvee) that has been turned into a Causality evacuation platform - M1114 ambulance.
Army photo provided by Lt. Edward C.F. Lau |
SAMARRA, Iraq - The Army has a catchphrase - "Adapt, improvise and overcome" and that is just what the medics at Forward Operating Base Brassfield-Mora have done.
2nd Lt. Edward C.F. Lau, Evacuation Platoon Leader, 690th Medical Company in support of the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, Forward Operating Base Brassfield-Mora in Samarra had an idea to implement the design for a new medical evacuation platform.
"My chain of command gave the opportunity to implement a new ground evacuation doctrine, depending on its success - it will be the new standard for ground patient movement in Iraq," Lau said.
At the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom IV, the military had banned the use of armored ground ambulances, which was called a Field Logistical Ambulance. The FLA was the primary vehicle for units to provided ground evacuation care.
Medics from the 690th Medical Company, test the modifications to the M1114 (armored Humvee) that has been turned into a Casualty evacuation platform - M1114 ambulance.
Army photo provided by Lt. Edward C.F. Lau |
The FLA was not considered to have enough armor to take outside the bases, so it became an internal-use vehicle. Evacuating the injured Soldier became limited to air evacuation or the unit's heavy-armored humvee.
"This new rule made our job in Iraq very difficult to do ... basically ending ground evacuation (outside the FOBs)," Lau said.
The medics were now limited to first aid care, which also compounded the problem. They did not have a platform to work from or medical equipment that is in armored ambulances.
"I felt these soldiers needed a conventional ground evacuation platform to work with, especially with the mission in the city," Lau said. "I'm currently testing two types of casualty evacuation vehicles - One being the M1114 (armored Humvee) and also the LMTV (armored 5-ton truck). By doing this, it creates a new SOP for evacuation care."
In addition to creating and testing the new vehicles, the unit has to maintain their assigned task of providing evacuation coverage for the soldiers in FOB Brassfield-Mora and Patrol Base Razor. These services include primary evacuation care, convoy support, detainee medical assessment, Iraqi medical training and assistance with patient care.
The unit calls itself the "Rat Pack" because the team is setting the standard for evacuation care in Iraq, just as Frank Sinatra's group changed the entertainment industry during 50-60's.
"We are doing the same for patient evacuation platforms in Iraq ... just like Sinatra did for the music industry in New York," Lau said. "All I know is ... I saw an opportunity and I took it. If it works out, then I know my team made a difference in Iraq."
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