As a Defense Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosives (CBRNE) Response Force (DCRF) unit, 1st Medical Brigade has been constantly on alert since June 2016 and ready to respond to any domestic incident at a moment's notice. This high state of readiness was put to the test in early December 2016 when the brigade headquarters was given a no-notice mission to deploy to the National Capital Region and support the 58th Presidential Inauguration as a Medical Mission Command task force.
Within 48 hours of receiving the mission, Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers from the Brigade Headquarters and three subordinate battalions were enroute to Washington, D.C., ready to hit the ground running and stand up Joint Task Force Medical (JTF-MED) for the inauguration. With guidance from Col. Anthony R. Nesbitt and Command Sgt. Maj. Edward G. Ellis-Kelsey, 1st Medical Brigade Commander and Command Sergeant Major, to take ownership of the mission, the 25 Soldier staff got to work identifying requirements, capabilities, and shortfalls.
Undoubtedly, the greatest hurdle the task force had to overcome was bringing together hundreds of soldiers from all branches of the military and multiple locations in order to build a common understanding under one Command. Utilizing multiple rehearsals, communication exercises, Rehearsal of Concept (ROC) drills, and daily Commander's Update Briefs, JTF-MED was able to build a strong team going into the inauguration weekend events.
JTF-MED's mission during the inauguration weekend was to provide medical support to over 8,000 Title X Department of Defense members and their dependents at three major events: the Inauguration Parade, the Armed Services Ball, and the National Prayer Service. DoD medical teams were co-located with partners from U.S. Health and Human Services to provide care to civilians. While 1st Medical Brigade personnel staffed the joint task force headquarters, the medical officers, NCOs, and Soldiers came from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Fort Belvoir Community Hospital, Joint Base Andrews, Joint Base Anacostia Boling, Fort McNair, and Fort Myer to staff the aid stations at the different inauguration events. In addition to the mission of providing care to human DoD members, JTF-MED also provided care to DoD and government owned horses and explosive detection dogs who were supporting the inauguration events. JTF-MED deployed four veterinary treatment teams from the National Capital Region to support our four legged service members. There were also two food defense teams in place to help protect the food for DOD personnel. In the event of a large-scale crisis, the Command was positioned to provide continued medical support to civilian authorities for Consequence Management.
After a long 48 hours of inauguration events, JTF-MED stood down operations following the successful completion of the National Prayer Service. The team received a heart-felt thanks from Maj. Gen. Bradley Becker for all the hard work and critical medical support. JTF-MED elements redeployed back to home station at the end of January after receiving valuable experience working in a joint and inter-agency environment, planning and executing a large scale National Security Special Event. Redeployment does not mean a time to rest, however. 1st Medical Brigade remains on the DCRF mission until June 2017 and will therefore continue to "set the standard" for mission readiness and no-notice deployments in support of full spectrum operations.
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