UNITED STATES Air Force personnel presently on a one-week visit with their local counterparts yesterday engaged some ranks of the Guyana Defence Force and personnel from two city hospitals in a First Responder medical training exercise.

GDF ranks respond to an injured party at the simulation exercise yesterday.

At a simulation exercise at the Ogle aerodrome, East Coast Demerara, media operatives were witness to the expertise and knowledge that the locals garnered from the American Air Force personnel.

Describing yesterday’s scenario, First Responder Commander at the Ogle airport, Marcia Gravesande, explained a make-believe scenario that is all too familiar on our roadways.
It involved two vehicles, one a minibus and the other a GDF vehicle, which were however not present at the exercise. The minibus was speeding and failed to stop at a traffic light, subsequently colliding with the Army vehicle and seriously injuring the occupants of both vehicles.

Gravesande pointed out that in cases such as these, first responder knowledge is imperative for hospital and military personnel when arriving on such scenes.

She stated that the 26 selected to undergo the training, six of whom were drawn from the Georgetown Public Hospital and the St. Joseph’s Mercy hospital, are now well-trained to handle these situations.

Gravesande added this is the first time that the U.S. has provided such skills to Guyana.

U.S. Air Force Captain, Adam Wall, speaking to the media following the exercise, said that they are glad to provide the mass casualty training to Guyanese civilians and the GDF.

He remarked that the participants are now very capable and responded well to the training, adding that they can now apply their knowledge in an actual situation.

Meanwhile, GDF Medical Officer, Major Dr. Frederick Dean, said that the training provided by the U.S. Air Force was very in-depth and will assist the ranks in carrying out their duties as First Responders on a casualty scene.

The U.S. Air Force personnel are in Guyana as part of an ongoing programme called “Operation Southern Partner”, an intelligence sharing programme with a number of Caribbean and South American countries.