tikrit

Last week TF21 left Kuwait in 5 chalks. We had too many people going to 3 different locations for the Air Force to give us big planes. Some people got to fly directly there, and others were stuck for days in layover locations before finally arriving. I was on the 4^th chalk but I got to fly direct. We left Camp Buehring in the afternoon after loading all of our gear and cleaning the tent. The first 2 chalks left the night previous and didn’t help us clean the tent at all. It was completely gross how much hair and dirt was left where people had not swept the whole 10 days we were there. So, it was left to us. Gee, thanks guys. Either way, we were all glad to finally be leaving.

That day it decided to rain, thunder, and lightning. I never would have thought that my flight would be compromised by weather in Kuwait. Chicago in the winter, yes. Kuwait, no. When we arrived at the Air Base we were departing from, the other chalks that we supposed to have left earlier in the day were still there. They had cancelled their flights. We got set up in a long tent that had chairs and couches and we were prepared to stay the night. It wasn’t looking good but since our flight was supposed to be late, we had hope. We were there for a few hours while they double checked the manifest and prepared the plane. In order to get our gear on the plane with us, we had to palletize it. All of us went out to the truck, got in a double line, alternating with the person across from us, and passed the gear down to be stacked and secured. Some of our gear was ridiculously heavy and even though we had to wear our battle rattle on the plane, it didn’t help relieve a lot of weight. With everyone helping, it made the gear off load quickly and we got to get out of the rain. It seemed like our chance for departure was slim, but then we were told “gear up”. We were heading out to the flight line! We wore our vests, our helmets, eye protection, ear protection, and gloves. We also had our weapons with a 30 round magazine-not loaded. It was a tight squeeze on a C-130, but we fit 50 people and our gear. We all grabbed motion sickness bags because we were warned that flights into theater aren’t like normal flights. I had flown on a C-130 in the states with a patient once and I hated it then, this was going to be worse.

The flight into Tikrit was about an hour and a half. I kept my eyes closed the whole time. The fumes made me nauseous to start, but the roller coaster flying kept me nauseous the whole time. I actually managed to fall asleep too, but whenever I woke up I felt sick. Roller coaster is the best way to describe a flight into theatre. There are a lot of quick ups, downs, lefts, and rights, and it’s not a gentle landing. Once we were on the ground and the hatch opened we were all looking for a breath of fresh air, but we got a face full of exhaust instead. First they had to unload all our gear before we could get out so we were stuck. Once we managed to untangle from each other and get off the plane we all felt much better. We squeezed onto tiny little buses and were immediately driven to our LSA (Life Support Area). There we were assigned our CHU’s (Containerized Housing Units) and we moved in. I have never been more thankful for a crappy mattress on a frame then I was that night (or morning by that time). We managed to get about 6 hours of sleep before having a formation in the morning. Luckily, we were given the day to adjust before starting work. Penny met me and I unloaded her TV, fridge, microwave, and DVD player into my CHU. Then we traded wall lockers with Kristina’s room next door because I had two big and she had two little. We walked around post a little and found the Post Exchange, the DFAC, the CSH, and the laundry. The people who arrived the day before oriented to the MCU (Multidisciplinary Care Unit), a combination ICU/Ward/PACU, where we will be working for the next 6-12 months.

Since then, the days have all melted together. I have no idea what day of the week or date of the month it is. We conducted a few days of skills lab training and then all too quickly, I started night shift. Currently we are working 6 days on and 1 day off. My first day off isn’t until the 28^th. We were given 24 hours to adjust. We trained one day and worked the following night. I ended up just sleeping all night and all day for the first night. Normally, it’s not so hard to adjust to nights if you’re going to work nights for a few moths and you’re able to go home and go to sleep. That’s normally. The first morning after the first night we had to be back on the MCU at 0900 for a Mass Casualty exercise (MASCAL). That lasted 3 hours. Then we had to go back to sleep to go back to work at 1830. The second morning after the second night we had to be back at the CSH at 0930 for helicopter loading training. Then, we had to go back to sleep to be back at work at 1900 for our first night working solo without the 47^th CSH there to help us. Then, the third morning after the third night we went to sleep to be woken up at 0900 for a MASCAL exercise. There is no sound worse right now than a fist pounding BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG on your door when you’re deeply asleep. So, up I got, to the CSH I ran, and 3 hours later they finally called “end exercise”. It was total chaos. Granted, it was our first exercise ran by us. The first one we watched the 47^th do it. This was our show. Communication is the hardest thing when there are 12 patients, not enough staff, 10 minute theoretical operations, ridiculous traffic up and down the floor, and a helicopter waiting for 6 patients to get packed and loaded when there’s only room for 4. It was crazy. I was crabby. We are staffing this combat support hospital with 1/3 the staffing that the 47^th has. It’s going to be rough when we get a real MASCAL. Thankfully, when it was all over, my head nurse said, “night shift is coming in a 2200.” I first thought she said “2000”-like 8pm. No, it was 2200!! SWEET! So we got lunch and went back to bed knowing that we could get some decent sleep, finally!!! I’m sure day shift wasn’t happy to work 15 hours, but they were all good sports.

The dust here is unbelievable and it’s only winter. Not only is there a constant haze to the air, you can taste it too. There’s no escape-even in our CHU’s. We essentially live in a fortified trailer park. The people who built the trailer park didn’t build them to code. There are leaks everywhere. The doors don’t seal and the roofs don’t meet the walls squarely. We have air fresheners everywhere, dryer sheets in our AC units, and surgical towels as secondary filters-anything to try to improve the air. I am very thankful for a working heater because it’s COLD. It’s so nice to walk into a warm room and get cozy in my bed.

The internet is slower than anything. It doesn’t work very well. But, it’s all relative. I’m lucky to have my own room, a bed, internet in my room, AFN (which I don’t even have in Germany). The walls are so thin you can hear everything. So, it’s a false sense of privacy, but it’s wonderful nonetheless. After being here for about a week the biggest thing that I need is swiffer pads. I bought a swiffer duster because I had to buy something and I know that I have 3 swiffers at home but it costs more to mail one than buy a new one. They only sell the wet pads here and I need the dry ones too. Other than that, we have Subway, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Burger King, and a mini mall with shops run by local vendors. It’s not a bad place to be.

Currently, we’re learning where things are on the unit. One thing we learned in the MASCAL today was that knowing the general area of equipment wasn’t enough to find what you needed when you needed it NOW. SPC Palmer even sent us on a scavenger hunt to find the 4 locations where we keep IV supplies. I thought that was a really good idea. Later, we’re going to practice packaging a patient for flight, or “burrito-ing” the patient. Luckily, LRMC has a very similar process, so it’s familiar to me. It’s only 0200 and we’re here until 0700. Time is going slow tonight. I cannot wait for my first night off. I will relish it.