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Friday, June 5th, 2009

Amputees assist with military training

by wendy

Shock value

A real amputee using fake gore assists with military training

Thursday, June 04, 2009

John Pickup, managing director of Amputees in Action, explains how using real amputees and fake gore to simulate battlefield injuries can aid military training.

From infancy, people learn best by mimicking situations, especially using common objects that are applicable to the scene. Toy versions of nearly everything, from cars to cookers, exist to aid learning. This bears true in the application of knowledge and understanding to any subject that ultimately requires practical treatment.

This can best be shown by looking at the learning process, and, according to American psychiatrist William Glasser, we learn:

• 10% of what we read
• 20% of what we hear
• 30% of what we see
• 50% of what we see and hear
• 70% of what is discussed with others
• 80% of what is experienced personally
• 95% of what we teach to someone else

This explains why so many people do not bother to read instructions when trying to work an appliance – something we are all guilty of.

Over the years, the rapid advancement of information technology and simulation aids has benefited both tutor and learner alike in the medical or emergency services and the military forces. The downside is that there is no spontaneity in cause and effect of application. This is noticeably applicable to a casualty simulation. Using a programmed, inanimate object, either on-screen or in a classroom setting, does not have the same impact or prepare the student to deal with an actual casualty. However, in all these areas, practical exercises, in the form of casualty simulations, have been the ultimate measurement of competency at all levels, from command and control through to the individual taking orders. It also plays a major part in learning, falling into what Glasser classifies as the 80% category of what is experienced personally.

Production companies have hired amputees for films to give realistic visual impact, so why not apply the same concept to training? This can be done using amputee role players as Trauma Casualty Amputees (TCA), with special effects applied to residual limbs, and creating secondary and/or superficial injuries.

With knowledge and understanding of cause and effect, and medical practices – and armed with a detailed brief of the scenario – the TCA is fully prepared to ‘test’ the system and training. This ranges from command and control of incidents, machinery, appliances and people. The military today have to be prepared for all casualties from the point of contact/injury to repatriation. On paper, the process has been defined meticulously, and, in theory, works. When people and circumstance are added to the mix, the whole dynamics of the procedure change. At any level of training, TCAs can be inserted into a simulation to add a new dimension. From the point of injury/contact, the traumatically injured person will need attention, which could be basic medical attention. The shock of witnessing a limb being blown off can waste valuable time in administering any treatment, so by desensitising the situation, processes will automatically be applied. The correct application of equipment and passing on of information has proven to be priceless, and is imperative to the survival of the injured. This can be isolated to individual areas of training or in a large-scale simulated battle.

Candid feedback and discussions by TCAs is given, where anyone participating in the simulation can gain an insight into being an amputee. This all helps when dealing with the real situation – there is life after amputation. The focus is the saving of that life, but it is also to make the person feel comfortable and assured that all is going well during treatment.

Lastly, the amputees have all experienced life-saving medical procedures. All owe their lives to the care and attention given by people who have been trained in first response, first aid, the medical profession, or the complexities of rehabilitation. They have first-hand understanding of the urgency required in the treatment of major traumatic injuries, and playing such an integral part in overall effective training gives them immeasurable satisfaction and personal pride.

(Thanks to Steve McNeice for sending this article)

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