Recently Tampa Fire Rescue was afforded a unique opportunity. Chief M. Stokes, Captain S. Ehlers, Captain G. Allen and myself; were allowed unprecedented access and allowed to train with the Army Rangers Special Forces 18 Delta’s at the Joint Special Operations Training Center at Ft. Bragg, NC. Special Operations personnel from all branches of the military conduct paramedic training in pursuit of National Registry EMT-Paramedic (NREMT-P) certification within the Special Operations Combat Medic Course. This training is conducted in the Joint Special Operations Medical Training Center at Ft. Bragg, NC. One aspect of their training that was identified early on was the need for a realistic clinical environment to practice their skills before joining their operational units. Tampa offered the opportunity for students. Since 1998 Tampa Fire Rescue has allowed students to participate in an emergency room and rescue “ride along” program and serve as a joint clinical training site along with New York City for these select Special Operations Medics. Tampa was selected as an ideal training environment because of its centralized Fire/EMS and hospital system.  Students perform at least 240 hours of rescue and clinical experience during an intense 30-day training program.

  I would like to give you a little background into the selection process as to what these young men go through prior to arriving in Tampa. The profile of such a person would be a soldier with approx. 3 years in the Army (Ranger), Air Force (PJ- Para-Rescue Jumper), or Navy (Seal). By the time the Army Special Operations Medic arrives here he has passed two of the many hurdles in front of him. The initial selection process for Special Operations has only a 50 % pass rate. If they pass the initial selection, which is about 3 weeks long they proceed to 3-month infantry school. After that, they are placed in their respective specialty. Within the Army, Rangers can be deployed as an Officer, Engineer, Weapons Specialist, Communications Specialists, or Medic. By the time the medics arrive in Tampa or New York they are finishing their clinical rotations for the National Registry. This initial paramedic course is 24 weeks long. Out of all the specialties the medic is one of the toughest to complete. If for some reason they do not pass a section they are allowed to “recycle” one time. If they do not make it after the recycle, they are allowed to try for another specialty as opposed to losing the Special Forces candidate all together. If they passed the National Registry they move right into a very intense 22 -week course in advanced trauma training.

  At this point the medics are placed under very tight time limits for completing their trauma skills. They are all placed in very real scenarios. One of the biggest issues they will have to confront is trauma care management. They are trained to provide care for an injured soldier for up to 72 hours. With that in mind, they are trained in advanced procedures that include blood administration, surgical procedures, debridement, field amputation, veterinary medicine, lab interpretation and administration of antibiotics. Once again if they fail any part of their trauma assessment they are recycled one time, if they fail again they are out of the medic program.  This portion of the program only has a 40 % pass rate due to the strict trauma guidelines. If they complete the advanced trauma training they proceed to the next phase which is a large field training exercise called PineLand. The premise of the scenario goes something like this. The soldiers are placed in a fictitious county where they must integrate with the local police and win the hearts and minds of the towns’ people to overthrow a corrupt government. Just like all of the other training, if they fail to perform they can be removed from the selection process.

  Sounds like a lot to put up with doesn’t it?  Well there’s more; they are required to learn a language.  The language learned is dependent upon what battalion they are assigned to. There are seven battalions located in different regions of the world. They may have to learn French, Chinese, Russian, German or any one of the many Middle Eastern or Caribbean languages. Depending upon the language they are assigned, it may take anywhere from three months to nine months to complete. After the language course they have one last hurtle to clear. At this point all of the remaining candidates must complete S.E.R.E. training. S.E.R.E. stands for Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape. In this training they are taught to evade capture, and if they are captured how to survive being a prisoner of war. One item we found incredibly interesting; the Geneva Convention states as a prisoner of war you are not allowed to kill your captor while trying to escape. If you do, kill your captor while trying to escape you have the potential to be brought up on charges for violating the Geneva convention, an unbelievable situation to be in wouldn’t you say.  As you can imagine this is extremely difficult training and mentally draining. From the Ranger perspective after S.E.R.E., their training is complete; from start to finish this has been over a two-year process. When you compile all of the training including parachute jump school, and free fall school, this is basically the equivalent of a four- year college degree. These individuals are usually in the Army for a 20-year career.

  This visit was also very a sobering experience. Throughout the training center, are the pictures of the past students and instructors the have lost their lives fighting for our country. Just prior to our visit, they told us they had lost three former students in Afghanistan. In closing, I would just like to relay a few words from the Special Forces men at Ft. Bragg. All of the students and instructors have had nothing but wonderful things to say about the experiences, preceptors and firefighters they have met here in Tampa. They wanted me to thank you for your time and effort; you do make a difference. Also remember a couple of other things, when you have one of these medics riding with you, have a little extra patience and understanding, these individuals are highly motivated and strive to perform. Spending time at the station with them you realize these young men are more than just a paramedic student. Spend some time talking with them, who knows you may learn something.

  Now one last point. The Special Forces Medics can train anywhere in the world, where do they want to be? Not in LA, not in Phoenix, not Seattle, but here in Tampa! That in itself speaks volumes about you and our department. I want you to really think about this. After they leave Tampa and are shipped out to their assignment, many of them are going straight into harms way, some to Afghanistan or the Middle East. Some will not return, and some will be able to save the lives of their fellow soldiers or innocent civilians because of the experiences and training they have received in Tampa. Not many departments across the country can say they are making such an important contribution to the war on terrorism. Outstanding!