OOC:

Wrex
Combat Medic
Level 1: Medic Basics
Story 1: First Aid

Wrex slapped the table near his bunk as the piercing sound of his alarm woke him from his troubled sleep. Turning over, books and papers on his chest falling to the floor with loud slaps and crinkles, he groped for the alarm and shut it off.

Seven in the morning. Way too early. Returning from his mission a week ago, he had gotten little sleep. Waking up early in the morning didn't help his tired mind.

He rose from his bunk and stretched, his arms reaching towards the ceiling.

It doesn't help that I've been studying medicine this entire time since we've gotten back. I haven't had a minute of free time in forever. He looked down at the books that were now scattered around his bed. There was one on the anatomy of humans, another on basic treatment of wounds in the field, and still another on more advanced techniques, such as field surgery and working with explosion victims. The pictures and descriptions inside the books had made Wrex's skin crawl, but ever since Eriadu he had been determined to become a medic. The loss of every medic except for one was not a very comforting thing to Wrex.

Blackjack need's a medic. And I'm the guy to do it. He thought as he grabbed a towel and headed for the showers. He needed to clear his mind of the early morning cobwebs.

----------

Wrex came back fifteen minutes later, his head and body still dripping from the cleansing shower. He dressed in his gray uniform quickly, the water leaving dark spots in the fabric. He glanced down at his datapad on the table next to his bunk and was surprised to see it blinking.

Did it finally go through...? He picked up the datapad and scrolled through to his most recent message.

To: Corporal Wrex
From: Platoon Sergeant Jegora
Subject: Specialty Transfer

Message:

Corporal Wrex,

Your request for specialty transfer from Heavy Weapons Specialist to Combat Medic has been approved. Report to Medical Laboratory A-7Z for training at 0800 hours today.

The message ended abruptly, but Wrex didn't care. He was too excited. He glanced down at the clock on his bedside table and almost jumped. He had barely enough time to make it to the laboratory at a full sprint. He decided to try his luck anyway and took off, other troopers jumping out of the way as he ran down the hallways of the complex.

-------

Wrex stumbled into the lab, breathing heavily. He leaned against one of the counters, making room for his hand by shoving aside beakers and tubes. He failed to realize that he wasn't alone in the lab, the medic instructor having already started his lesson.

Wrex looked up from the floor, seeing the instructor and several other troopers surrounding a human dummy near the middle of the lab. They were staring at him, the instructor from behind a pair of military standard issue glasses.

"How nice of you to join us. It seems that time isn't of importance to you. How unfortunate, seeing as how on the battlefield that time is everything to a medic. Without time, you cannot save the lives of your comrades. Without time, you cannot stabilize your friends as they lose blood. Without time, you are nothing."

Wrex walked over to the group as the instructor pointed down at the dummy.

"We will be using this dummy. It completely replicates human heart rate, breathing, all things that can go wrong, all things that can go right, and even screaming. Yes, your patients will scream. You'll learn how to prevent that." The instructor looked around at the troopers, eying each one closely.

"First, let us see if you know your basics. You," he said, pointing at a trooper next to Wrex, "What are the three P's of each case?"

The trooper stuttered at first grasping for the words, but eventually they came smoothly as he remembered the words he had studied for hours. "The f-first of the three is to p-preserve life. To stop the person from succumbing to their wounds." The instructor grunted his approval as the trooper continued.

"The second is to prevent further injury. Treat the wounds so that they will not hurt the patient anymore and if possible, relieve any pain that the patient is experiencing. The final one is to promote recovery. Bacta patches, bandages, anything that will help the patient recover faster."

The instructor nodded his approval. "Very well done. I haven't met a trooper who was able to get that right on his first try in years. Next. You." The instructor pointed at another trooper, a sergeant by the insignia on his uniform. "What are the ABC's of a medic?"

The sergeant was visibly less nervous as he rattled off the list. "The ABC's are a way of remembering the most vital things that a patient needs to live, airway, breathing, and circulation, in that order. The airway is needed to prevent hypoxia, a lack of oxygen in the blood. Unconscious patients need help clearing their airway, as the tongue can block the throat. Tilting the head back carefully and lifting the chin can adequately unblock the airway. However, if a spinal injury is suspected, the modified jaw thrust should be used to move the mandible forward and unobstruct the airway."

The sergeant took a deep breath and continued, the rest of the troopers enthralled with his intimate knowledge. "Breathing is needed in almost all organic life. Without it, the patient will die. After clearing the airway, one must check to see if the patient is performing normal respiration on their own. This means twelve to thirty breaths per minute. If the patient is breathing less than this, CPR needs to begin immediately to prevent loss of life."

"Last but not least, circulation is needed to provide oxygen to the body and to remove waste. Without it, the patient would most assuredly die. After airway and breathing have been assessed and secured, a pulse must be taken to be sure the heart is beating. Observations of blue, mottled, or cold limbs can indicate poor circulation. Blood pressure can also be taken to assess whether or not the patient is descending into shock." The sergeant stopped, a smug grin on his face.

The instructor smiled. "Correct. However, arrogance as you've shown can lead to mistakes. And one mistake means death." The sergeant's grin evaporated as the instructor continued. "Now, for the fun part. If you've all remembered your basic first aid, this should be a breeze for you. I lied when I said the dummy here would be your patient. You will all report to the simulator room for an in combat experience. I expect none of you to fail. You have twenty minutes. Dismissed."

Wrex didn't feel like being late again. He followed a few other early troopers up to the simulation room and waited, turning over his books in his mind.

---------

"Medic!" Wrex heard the yell and sprinted toward the source of the voice, a burly sergeant with blackened armor crouching over another trooper, who was clutching the side of his armor.

"Gun wound?" Wrex asked the sergeant as he knelt down, unstrapping his medic bag. He opened the bag, revealing a lone medpac. I've got to be done sometime soon. He had been treating wounds for well over an hour and the toll was starting to show in his simulated patients. The last trooper he had fixed up had still been bleeding when the evac had arrived, due to some faulty stitching.

One more and I'm done. No screwups.

"Mortar round came in and blew him to hell. I'm surprised he still has his legs." The sergeant said, glancing at the blood that was gushing between the mans fingers. Wrex felt a slight wave of nausea go through him.

His sickness was interrupted by a loud explosion nearby. "Quick, help me move him." He said, grabbing the man's legs. The sergeant obliged quickly, grabbing the trooper's shoulders. They moved quickly to cover behind a large tree, nestling the trooper among the roots.

Wrex held the man's arm back, trying to survey the damage. Blood poured out of an open wound in the man's side and Wrex could see the man's intestines.

"He's hurt pretty bad." Wrex said to the sergeant. "Distract him."

Wrex's command was hurriedly obeyed by the sergeant, who moved between the troopers head and the wound as Wrex went to work. Pulling gauze from the medpac now opened near his legs, he applied pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding. Holding a firm hand on the wound, ignoring the troopers grunts of pain, he radioed for a retrieval team to carry the man to a hospital.

"Retrieval, this is BJM-1. Need evac at 92 north, 47 west."

"Acknowledged. ETA ten minutes."

I don't know if he has that long. Thought Wrex, as he continued to apply pressure. The man was now weakly trying to swat his hand away because of the pain, but the sergeant grabbed hold of it and kept him still.

Several minutes passed before the bleeding finally ceased. Wrex threw aside the gauze, now dripping and red from the trooper's blood, and grabbed a bacta patch from the medpac. He slapped it over the wound, making sure it was sealed tight against the skin. The sergeant blanched as the smell reached him. Wrex ignored him and grabbed new bandages. Wrapping them tightly around the abdomen of the trooper, he quickly covered the wound with layers.

Satisfied with his work, he checked the trooper for other wounds but found only minor cuts and bruises. Eventually, the simulated retrieval team appeared and carried the man off. The world faded around Wrex as the men disappeared into the distance. The instructor's voice filled Wrex's ears as he returned to reality.

"For a person with a lack of time management, you sure know how to work quickly. I wasn't sure whether or not to give you the mortar victim. He's usually too advanced for greenhorn medics. You pass. You will be receiving a message with your next class time. Until then, continue to study. You'll need it."

As Wrex left the simulation room and headed back to his bunk, he couldn't help but feel pleased with himself.

Now for a nice sleep.

OOC:

looks good Wrex I'm not going to do too much critiquing due to how long ago it was written. I like how you moved from scene to scene made a for nice story. For the rest of these, please don't mention your involvement in BJ, technically these stories are supposed to take place before you leave the academy so you should be a green recruit. You may know that you are going to BJ and heard they need a medic but don't relate actual BJ experiences. (No i'm not making BJ jokes I'm just to tired to spell it out) PASS