1 The Long War Journal: In Pictures: MEDEVAC missions in Afghanistan

Written by Phil Peterson on April 30, 2008 10:42 AM to 1 The Long War Journal

Available online at: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/04/in_pictures_medevac.php

Click to view images of the US Army's MEDEVAC mission in Afghanistan.

At Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan, more than 90 percent of the Medical Evacuation, or MEDEVAC, missions are to help Afghans, both local nationals as well as Afghan National Army soldiers. The patients who take these flights have medical emergencies and need to be transferred to a full-service hospital. The hospital at Bagram Air Field is prepared to handle most medical issues that may arise in the field or on base. The MEDEVAC crews transfer everything from very ill children to gravely wounded soldiers and civilians.

The medics are as efficient as they are compassionate. Despite tight quarters, the medics attend to their patients' medical needs while making their patients as comfortable as possible. When patients are stable, the medics are able to provide comforting measures, like a stuffed toy for an ailing child or a pat on the hand for a wounded soldier. Even after the mission is over, the flight crews frequently check on the status of their patients at Bagram Air Field Hospital.