An Cosantóir

| 27 www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 27 www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE from credible sources such as the World Health Organisation, the UNHCR, US Centre for Disease Control and Department of Foreign Affairs. Finally, on presenting the student is questioned by directing staff and expected to provide a hard copy of their presentation and references. MEDICAL ORDERS While all NCOs have some experience of extracting, preparing, and giving a set of orders during a Platoon or section attack with the goal of destroying the enemy the purpose of medical orders can be drastically different from what NCOs have previously experienced. Accordingly, the medical section may be tasked with setting up a hospital during the initial deployment of a Battalion an area which is not covered by the issued set of TAMS. This will provide a challenge to the Medical NCO as they will not simply be able to extract all the relevant information from an operation order and will have to liaise with the relevant sections, they require assistance from other specialists such as engineers and transport. Taking a scenario like this into account students are given lectures on this area based on previous experiences of the Defence Forces and provided with examples of how these medical deployments were achieved. Students are then given a scenario and must extract, prepare, and give a full set of platoon level orders which must include all relevant information and timelines. Students are also required to provide models or aerial photographs when giving these orders. During the orders session, DS rigorously question students on all aspects of their orders to ensure that every eventuality is covered. At the end of this module, students have not only gained a new skill in delivering specific medical orders, but they have also integrated the skills gained during both the clinical leadership and medical intelligence modules. MAJOR INCIDENT MEDICAL MANAGEMENT AND SUPPORT (MIMMS) In recent years there have been numerous major incidents throughout the world such as the Manchester Bombings, the Bataclan attacks, the Beirut explosion and indeed, in Ireland there was the Creeslough explosion in 2022. MiMMS is focused on dealing with such major incidents in both a military and civilian environment. The course which is run by ALSG International is run over a period of three days with online learning which must be completed prior to the beginning of the course. Students are exposed to both theory and practical lessons by experienced instructors who have dealt with real-world scenarios. There is a steep learning curve and instructors push students to react to unexpected events which may happen during these scenarios. On the final day of the course, students are put through individual tests and finally, a group scenario where students must use their knowledge to effectively react to a scenario in which they have no prior knowledge. This module challenges students to not only think of military resources but also look at the management of civilian medical resources and forces students to make tough decisions with the main premise being that we must "do the most for the most" realising that sometimes this means making very tough decisions. MEDICAL PLANNING ''In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.'' — GEN DWIGHT EISENHOWER Medical planning is the ability to assess the mission, establish missions for subordinates and establish what resources are required to complete the mission, indeed, this module takes the students from the tactical level to the strategic level. Students must put all the knowledge they have gained together to effectively plan at a higher level. Students learn how to establish the support requirements for military operations, which is referred to as the "medical estimate". Accordingly, the medical estimate consists of two factors: FORCE HEALTH PROTECTION This area considers health promotion and preventative medicine, which is essentially advice and actions required to maintain both physical and psychological health. SPECIFIC MEASURES This area considers specific missions for the medical element of the mission, by looking at equipment and resources which are required by the medical element. To complete this module students are placed in groups and given a mission, they must then put all the skills they have learned together to develop a large plan for the deployment of a battalion- level force working in an austere environment. CONCLUSION The medical standard course equips students with the specific knowledge required to effectively operate at both a tactical and strategic level. This course is aimed at developing the capabilities of both individual NCOs and the Medical Corps as a whole. Students are pushed to think on many different levels in both a military and civilian context using all of their Medical and military knowledge. This course is essential for all Cpls in the Medical Corps to qualify for the rank of Sgt, and to enhance their Military Medical Training. Students who successfully completed the NATO MIMMS course in Galway earlier this year Soldiers deployed with the 122 Inf Bn taking part in Battlefield First Aid Training with Cpl's David Kane and Shane Curran Cpl Shane Curran instructing on a recent Battlefield First Aid course which was run in the Medical School, DFTC Irish Medics from the 122 IRISHPOL Batt taking part in a major incident exercise Members of the 122 IRISHPOL Batt UNIFIL, taking part in a major incident exercise

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