LANDSTUHL, Germany --Landstuhl Regional Medical Center participated June 9 in Maroon Surge 18, a Regional Health Command Europe emergency response training exercise designed to test organizational reactions and medical capabilities across the European theater.
For LRMC, the exercise began with a simulated explosion at the emergency department entrance causing dozens of injuries and casualties, resulting in a notional shutdown of that area of the hospital, patient evacuations, standing up distributed medical assets and partnering with German emergency responders.
"The main area that Maroon Surge tested for LRMC was our patient administration division," said Maj. Joshua Zeldin, chief of operations at LRMC. "We've got the emergency, rapid response medicine piece down; it's what we do every day at LRMC when we receive inbound service members who were wounded in forward operations. But as in this scenario, when you have 30 to 40 people injured at the same time screaming in pain, your emergency room has been blown up and things are chaotic, our administrative processes have to be extremely streamlined so that we know where every patient is at all times, and we've got to work with our community and host nation partners."
To manage the chaos and provide immediate medical care during the simulated scenarios, Zeldin partnered with the German Bundeswehr's 7th Company, Koblenz Battalion, 2nd Medical Regiment led by Capt. Michael G.
"During a mass casualty situation here at LRMC, not only would we receive aid from the Army Garrison's Directorate of Emergency Services, but the German emergency response teams would also be alerted," said Zeldin. "We've planned our partnership since December 2017 and Maroon Surge was a great chance for both American and German military medical personnel to practice working together during a crisis event."
The 7th Company, Koblenz Battalion, 2nd Medical Regiment is an ambulance company in the German military comprised of tactical combat medics who prepare for rapid deployment to Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo and Mali. As a ground medical evacuation asset, the company includes all-terrain vehicles, armed mobile first aid stations and other resources that enable them to be the primary combat medical control point for their wounded before being transported back to Germany, very similar to the U.S. military Role 2 Forward Surgical Teams.
"We partner with our allies mainly when we are on missions down range," said G. "But, this exercise was the first time for most of my soldiers to work in a multinational environment."
G. also credited Maroon Surge as an excellent opportunity for his soldiers to deal with language barriers as the exercise provided the opportunity for German and American soldiers to learn each other's medical terms.
"We have different procedures and different set ups in our ambulances," said G. "But, our primary mission is the same. We're all there to save lives."
For the LRMC Soldiers, learning about those differences between the two armies was the most fun, second only to their down time together trading military patches. Zeldin quickly pointed out that both the German and American Soldiers enjoyed spending time together, and that both teams intermingled quite well during the meals they shared together.
"LRMC Soldiers have been keeping in touch with the German soldiers," said Zeldin. "Maroon Surge really brought them together both on the battlefield, and as hosts and guests in Germany."
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