US Army Combat Medic loadout

[avantman42]

The following is copied/pasted from a friends post on Facebook. I thought it might be of interest.

Thought this might be of interest to Wilderness Medic types. I happened to come across a US Army report about infantry equipment loadouts, which included the medical equipment carried by their Rifle Platoon Combat Medics (the guys right at the front line of combat.)

The report is at:

http://thedonovan.com/archives/modernwarriorload/ModernWarriorsCombatLoadReport.pdf

Worn on Fighting Load Carrier/Interceptor Body Armor:
• Extra field dressings in MOLLE Pouches.
• Extra intravenous fluids bags in MOLLE Pouches with extra starter kits.

MOLLE or "M82" Aid Bag "Medical Rucksack" containing:
o Stethoscope
o Sphygmamometer with Case
o Field Dressings (8)
o Cravats (12)
o Israeli Dressings (4)
o Tourniquets (2)
o 1000cc NaCl (2)
o 4x4 Gauze (20)
o 2x2 Gauze (20)
o Bandaid (15)
o Kerlix (6)
o Chest Seal (2)
o Water Seal (3)
o J-Tube (4)
o Nasopharyngeal (3)
o IV Starter Kits (4)
o 14g Needle (8)
o Scapel 10 Blade (2)
o Scapel 12 Blade (2)
o Latex Gloves (10 pr)
o Pen Light (2)
o VS-17 Panel.
o Chemlite (4)
o Foot Powder (4)
o 4" Tape (2)
o 2" Tape (2)
o 9-Line Medevac Card (1)
o Scissors (2)
o Restricting Band (2)
o Oral Thermometer (1)
o Anal Thermometer (1)
o DD Form 1380 (8)
o Surgilube (8)
o Sharps Container (1)
o Pocket Mask (1)
o Acetomenophin (1)
o Aspirin (1 bottle)
o Lopermide (1 bottle)
o Zithromax (3 pack)
o Ibuprophin (1 bottle)
o Naproxne (1/2 bottle)
o Psuedophedrine (1/2 bottle)
o Medical quick reference books.

Total Fighting Load (uniform, body armour, all the stuff hung off those, a rifle and the M82 pack): 54.5lb

[headquarters]

good

good info

[Abbott Shaull]

Nice find.

[copeab]

I've found that PDF before when I was looking for the typical load carried by a soldier. Very useful.

One thing I'm curious about: is the base load of water typical for less arid environments I know in a desert water is more valuable than ammo.

[kato13]

Here are a few medical kid loadouts from my gaming site.
From here: Gaming Site->Equipment->Kit List
note 1:Restricted to registered users of the forum to keep search engines out
note 2: A majority of the kits are for Morrow Project teams but many of the medical ones can be used in T2k.
################################

Medical Kit, LRS combat lifesaver (CLS) bags:
Assembly Weight: 5.95 kg
Assembly Volume: 0.49 cu. ft.

Contents:
Bag of 800mg Motrin (1)
Bag of Tylenol (1)
Bandage, Adhesive 3/4 X 3 inches flesh (10)
Bandage, Elastic Coban Brown (ACE) 2"x5 yards (2)
Bandage, Elastic Coban Brown (ACE) 4"x5 yards (2)
Bandage, Gauze 6 Ply 10cm x 4m Sterile (6)
Bandage, Gauze Pad 4X4" (100mmX100mm) (8)
Bandage, Vaseline gauze 3x9" Foil Pack (3)
Betadine - 8oz squeeze bottle (2)
Betadine swabsticks pack of 3 (4)
Blade, Scalpel, No 11, for handle No 3, sterile (4)
Forceps, Hemostatic, Dandy, 14 cm, serrated, sideways curved (1)
Medical Kit, Venom (Snake/Insect) Extractor Kit (1)
-Box, Plastic, Snake Bite Kit (1)
--Bandage, Adhesive 3/4 X 3 inches flesh (3)
--Instruction Card - Venom Extraction (1)
--Pad, Alcohol (2)
--Razor, Disposable (1)
--Sting relief pads (2)
--Syringe vacuum pump (1)
--Venom Pump Suction Cups (4)
Needle Unit (I.V) 18ga.X1.25" (2)
Pad, Alcohol (25)
Poleless litter 78" x 24" (1)
Resuscitator, Valve Mask (1)
Resuscitator, Valve Mask Bag (1)
Ringers injection lactate 1000ML plastic (2)
Scalple, Handle, No 3 (for blades 10/11/15) (1)
Splint Aluminum Malleable (11x91cm 4.25x36") (2)
Suture, Polypropylene, .2x75cm .08x29.5" (Sterile w/ needle) (2)
Tape Adhesive Surgical Porous Woven Rayon 1"X10YDS (2)
Tape Adhesive Surgical Porous Woven Rayon 3"X10YDS (2)
Tube Endotracheal 10.7MM Diameter (2)

################################

Medical Kit, M-5 Medical Bag
Assembly Weight: 3.56 kg
Assembly Volume: 0.58 cu. ft.

Contents:
Bag, Nylon, Steel Reinforced 9x16x7" (1)
-Bandage, Adhesive 3/4 X 3 inches flesh (18)
-Bandage, Compress (300x300mm) (2)
-Bandage, Elastic Coban Brown (ACE) 4"x5 yards (2)
-Bandage, Gauze 6 Ply 10cm x 4m Sterile (9)
-Bandage, Gauze Pad 2X2" (50mmX50mm) (12)
-Bandage, Gauze Pad 3X3" (50mm X50mm) (12)
-Bandage, Gauze Pad 4X4" (100mmX100mm) (17)
-Bandage, Gauze, 10cm x 4m, elastic,non-sterile (4)
-Bandage, Gauze, 15cm x 4m, elastic,non-sterile (4)
-Bandage, Gauze, 6cm x 4m, elastic,non-sterile (4)
-Bandage, Gauze, 8cm x 4m, elastic,non-sterile (5)
-Bandage, Triangular, 136 x 96 x 96 cm (3)
-Combine Dressings 5"x9" (127mmX229mm) (6)
-Eye Gauze/Cotton Pads (6)
-Mask, Surgical (1)
-Pad, Alcohol (14)
-Pad, Ammonia inhalant (12)
-Povidone-iodine oint USP 10 % 1/8oz foil pack (8)
-Resuscitator, Valve Mask (1)
-Telfa pad (50x75mm 2"x3") Non stick Dressing (8)
-Telfa pad (75x100mm 3"x4") Non stick Dressing (8)
-Tongue Depressors (5)
-Tourniquets 14 X 1 blood taking rubber (2)
-Waterless Surgical Scrub 6oz bottle (1)

################################


Medical Kit, M3 Combat Lifesavers Bag
Assembly Weight: 4.44 kg
Assembly Volume: 0.28 cu. ft.

Contents:
Bag, Polyamide Nylon 11X6X9IN (1)
-Antihistamine(Pseudoephedrine hydrochloride) Bottle of 24 (1)
-Auto Injector, 2 PAM Chloride (5)
-Auto injector, Atropine (5)
-Bandage, Adhesive 3/4 X 3 inches flesh (18)
-Bandage, Compress (100x180mm) (6)
-Bandage, Gauze, 5cm x 4m, elastic,non-sterile (4)
-Bandage, Triangular, 136 x 96 x 96 cm (4)
-Betadine prep pad 2 X 1.375" (12)
-Gloves, Latex Exam (non sterile) (6)
-Intravenous inj set, 7 comp macro 10drops/ml (2)
-Mild pain reliever plastic bottle, 50 units (Tylenol) (2)
-Needle Unit (I.V) 18ga.X1.25" (2)
-Povidone-iodine oint USP 10 % 1/8oz foil pack (8)
-QuickClot Blood Loss Stopper (powder) 3.5 oz (10)
-Ringers injection lactate 500ml plastic bag (2)
-Scissors, Bandage 1.5" Cut lg 7.25" (1)
-Splint Aluminum Malleable (11x91cm 4.25x36") (1)
-Strong sedative 2 cc Syringes preloaded (Diazepam (Valium) 10 mg) (5)
-Tape, Paper Adhesive, 1"x10" roll (25mm X3M) (3)
-Tourniquets 14 X 1 blood taking rubber (2)
-Tube, oropharyngeal airway, Guedel, large adult (1)
-Tube, oropharyngeal airway, Guedel, small adult (1)

[pmulcahy11b]

As a combat lifesaver, I also carried an IV set and a bag of saline and a bag of Ringer's Lactate.

[HorseSoldier]

I've never known a medic to carry anything like a standardized load plan to begin with, and a good medic would always tailor load out to mission, threat, etc.

[pmulcahy11b]

As a combat lifesaver, I also carried an IV set and a bag of saline and a bag of Ringer's Lactate.

A couple of other things I added to my bag were superglue (to quickly seal gashes that weren't too deep, but would probably under normal circumstances require stitches), and tampons (to plug bullet holes). HorseSoldier is right, most soldiers in general, let alone medics, don't carry standard load plans.

[Eddie]

A couple of other things I added to my bag were superglue (to quickly seal gashes that weren't too deep, but would probably under normal circumstances require stitches), and tampons (to plug bullet holes). HorseSoldier is right, most soldiers in general, let alone medics, don't carry standard load plans.

Maybe in the old days, but nowadays pretty much every BN has an SOP of how many of what to carry where. And funnily enough, they seem to mimic the 75th Ranger Regiment's or Ranger Training Brigade's packing lists. Every soldier will carry that minimum amount, some go over, some stay with the minimum.

Now, in recent years with lessons learned in Iraq and A-stan and the introduction of MOLLE gear, most Company-level leadership is being a lot more relaxed on enforcement of having this pouch in that spot on that piece of equipment and looking more at, a) can the soldier kill the enemy with his gear on, b) does he have the equipment necessary for the mission, and c) does he have any additional equipment stipulated by the packing list to mitigate risk/weather

Thankfully, in even more recent years, that philosophy is starting to filter up to BN- and BDE-level leadership as they move from Company-level and BN Staff-level jobs. But the packing lists still exist...

[perardua]

Maybe in the old days, but nowadays pretty much every BN has an SOP of how many of what to carry where.

When I first joined the reserves, our kit policy was that in training you carried what you were told were you were told, but as soon as you got badged you could make your own decisions except for a few obvious things like everyone carrying their personal medical kit and ammo in the same place.

When I went to Afghanistan with a regular unit the kit demands became even looser, we were mainly doing vehicle mounted patrols and were told to keep as much stuff as possible off our person when in the vehicles, as getting kit caught on the hatch as you left it at some speed after hitting an IED had been known to cause more injuries. Most of us just had ammo and a mine kit on our persons, with the majority of our dismounted kit plus a camelbak in a daysack tucked into a shady spot of the wagon.

Of course, I get back to my reserve unit and find that in the year I've been gone it's become full of new recruits, and as a result has reverted to strict packing lists and kit checks before every exercise. Furthermore, because my face is no longer known, I'm treated like one of those recruits by the newer members of the training staff. Annoying.

[pmulcahy11b]

So here's what could be the start of a new thread: what non-standard gear did you carry in the military

Some of the non-standard stuff I carried at various times (aside from personal stuff like a cassette player and some cassettes, and generally at least one book I was reading at the time) included a strong work-knife with a hammer end (which I also kept sharp enough to be used as a weapon, though I never got in a situation where I had to), a dagger (ditto), a compass pouch, a 5-quart canteen attached to my ruck, a signal flasher (used it only once -- in Korea, one of the TAC crew got hit on the head by the hatch of an M-577 and was knocked unconscious. I signaled the Medivac helicopter with it -- tactically, through the bore of an M-203).

In Desert Storm, I had my standard six 30-round magazines -- plus three more in an extra ammo pouch, another in one leg pocket, and two 20-round magazines in the other leg pocket. And compared to many troops, I was carrying a light ammo load. But then again, I was also the Dragon gunner, since I was the only one in the platoon to have an actual C2 qualification.

[perardua]

Hmmm. On exercise in the UK my webbing normally contained whatever ammo we were issued, plus two water bottles (one with a metal mug), a single ration pack meal (sausage and beans, for preference), some tea/hot chocolate, socks, three six inch nails and two hexy fuel blocks for cooking with, my weapons cleaning kit, some mine tape, green string and arc markers, a magazine charger and some spare AAs in for my PRR and CWS. In my daysack I had a cut down foam sleeping mat for sitting on, sometimes a camelbak (in which case I binned off one of the water bottles), head torch, a warm layer for putting on if we were laying up for any length of time, and any other bits and bobs required for the task in hand.
My pockets contained first aid kit (left hand trouser map pocket contains a tourniquet and two field dressings), leatherman, soft hat/beret, cam cream, a compass, racing spoon, notebook and pens, aide memoire, more batteries, sweets, mini maglite, range cards and all kinds of random crap. I used to carry a lot of privately purchased stuff, but have since realised that nearly everything I need is available through the supply system.

In Afghanistan I was a lot more able to strip down to the absolute minimum - attached to my Osprey were my mag pouches for six mags, six 40mm pouches, a PRR, and a utility pouch for my mine marking kit, rifle pull through, miniflare (for warning people off when dismounted) and bandoleer of extra ammo. Tucked into the MOLLE loops was my racing spoon, rifle combi-tool and mag charger.

My daysack was kept right by the door of the wagon, and contained a camelbak, 24 hours of food, loads of lucozade powder, a ton of spare batteries, my CWS and HMNVS, a bandoleer of 11 40mm rounds plus 5 loose, rifle and UGL cleaning kit, several water bottles, and, in the top zip pocket, my PSP with a selection of films and games and whatever book I was reading. The idea was that this would be the only thing I'd grab if I had to leave the wagon under fire, and so it contained everything I might need. If I went on foot patrols I'd strip out what wasn't needed and travel light, often just taking the camelbak and leaving the rest if it was a quick bimble. Also, as I spent a lot of time in and around the wagon, the book and PSP gave me the means of entertaining myself without having to dig around in my bergen on a short stop. I tended not to eat, drink or use batteries from my daysack as the wagon I was the top cover on was the Flight CSS vehicle, so I could happily grab what I needed without digging into my emergency stocks.

You may be able to tell that I am a firm believer in one of the clauses to Murphy's Law, which is that the more you prepare for something, the less likely it is to happen.

My trouser pocket contained morphine, tourniquet, two field dressings and a selection cyalumes, both IR and visible. The other trouser pocket held my notebook and pencil, leatherman, headtorch (I had an LLM on the rifle so I didn't bother with a maglite) and random bits of food for giving to locals.

[perardua]

Oh, and for all of three days I carried the Sig pistol I was issued in a thigh holster, before, like nearly everyone else, I realised it was unnecessary, annoying and useful only for posing like James Bond, so I binned it off.

[pmulcahy11b]

Something I liked to have a good supply of were Granola Bars (I can't remember the specific brand, but they came in a green box and I haven't seen them in the stores for years). Great energy food; one or two will fill you up for hours, they're great energy food, and take up almost no space -- you can stash several of them on your person. You can easily eat them on a full-speed road march, and you can even munch on them during a patrol. The granola bars they sell these days in the US suck in comparison, and are made more for taste than nutrition; if you want something these days similar in quality, you'll have to pay a premium for items that are specifically sold as "energy bars."

Sometimes, they'll just inexplicably take something good off the market. What ever happened to Captain Crunch with Crunchberries and Tang

[Eddie]

What ever happened to Captain Crunch with Crunchberries and Tang

I buy both every payday.