Multi-national service members exchange knowledge to better themselves, eachother

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Brittany A. Chase
  • 35th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
Jaffna, SRI LANKA --  During Pacific Angel 16-3, members of the U.S. military exchanged knowledge and skills in Sri Lanka with military and civilian personnel from Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bangladesh, Aug. 15-20.

The combined military-to-military subject matter expert exchange (SMEE) training covered a range of theoretical as well as practical applications relating to crowd control, physical therapy, casualty evacuation simulations and biomedical equipment.

“The subject matter expert exchanges during PACANGEL 16-3 were designed to be rewarding engagements with key partners and allies — and they certainly were,” said Lt. Col. Edward Khim, PACANGEL 16-3 mission commander.

During one exchange, U.S. and Sri Lankan Air Force military medics performed a CASEVAC exercise. As the casualties received treatment, flight surgeons and military physicians evaluated and critiqued the nurses and medics on site. The patients were then transported to a mobile air-staging facility, where personnel evacuated the casualties during a simulated scenario onboard a C-130 aircraft.

CASEVAC was not the only expert exchange with partners from across the Pacific.

“The main training today at the Jaffna hospital was for general preventative maintenance and trouble shooting techniques,” said Tech. Sgt. Maison Babiera, 18th Medical Support Squadron medical maintenance NCO in charge from Kadena Air Base, Japan. “This is very important because the majority of the work they're doing are repairs, and in order to prolong the life of the equipment they need to learn the proper procedures for preventative maintenance, ultimately saving money in the long run.”

According to Babiera the current standard procedure for any type of maintenance on medical equipment is waiting for a call from the hospital stating the equipment needs a repair.

“[Jaffna hospital staff] aren't use to doing it this way,” said Babiera. “They only repair if there is a call; most of the time no one is making that call. Once they implement the preventative maintenance plan and do routine checks they’ll be able to optimize the use of the medical equipment.”

Like Babiera, Maj. David Poole, 35th Medical Operations Squadron physical therapy flight commander, was able to teach medical professionals how to better their current procedures by giving them a new perspective.

“During the SMEE we were able to teach the Bangladesh physical therapy specific techniques to increase movement,” said Poole. “We were able to show them why we do manipulation, joint mechanics, dry needling and various stretches to help give people movements allowing for better function.”

Poole stated this opportunity to exchange techniques and procedures was not only helpful to the international participants, but also himself, to learn how other countries provide medical care.

Although medical played a large part of the exchanges, civil engineering and security forces made their mark on PACANGEL 16-3 as well.

“Before construction began, we conducted a SMEE with SLAF members,” said Tech. Sgt. Craig Slaten, 354th Civil Engineer Squadron structural craftsman from Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. “The main focus was on using personal protective equipment, ladder safety, electrical safety and fall protection. It was hard with the language barrier, but we all learned a lot from the event.”

After everything was said and done, the SMEE was an overall success and an exciting experience said Poole.

“I really enjoyed the interactions and being able to bounce ideas off of other professionals from other countries,” said Poole. “The beautiful thing is getting to interact with people who are just as passionate about what they’re doing as you — it’s absolutely amazing. It makes you want to soak up as much information as you possibly can and I hope they were able to feel the same way I did.”