AU mission trains medical officers on emergency evacuations

MOGADISHU, March 29 (Xinhua) -- The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) said on Friday that it has ended a three-day orientation for its 39 military medical personnel on the management of casualties in conflict zones.

The AU mission said the orientation on emergency evacuations, management of casualties and trauma patients, in highly stressed environments was attended by military commanders, senior medical officers, principal nursing officers, laboratory technicians and pharmacists drawn from all AMISOM sectors.

Boniface Mandishona, the Force Medical Officer, attributed most injuries in combat zones, to the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) by the enemy.

"As you know, the biggest weapon in our Mission area, which is being used by Al-Shabab, are Improvised Explosive Devices. We get nasty injuries and some of these new staff are not exposed to the type of injuries that we get," he said in a statement issued in Mogadishu.

"So this conference gives them an opportunity to interact with our training team, who will then impart the knowledge that is necessary for us to improve on troops' health and ability in the mission area," said Mandishona.

AMISOM said the orientation, undertaken by medical personnel operating in combat zones, is part of the AU Mission's medical support plan aimed at ensuring that all its medical personnel are well versed in battlefield First Aid, casualty evacuations and care, handling drug stockpiles and disposal of medical waste.

It said the training oriented the medical personnel on aspects of emergency trauma handling in the frontline - which include learning ways of stopping excessive bleeding and proper handling of fractures, to ensure injured troops are safely evacuated to hospitals.

"This mission is going to expose you to injuries that are predominantly IED-type injuries, which some of you are not familiar with," Fidza Dludlu, the AMISOM Head of Mission Support told participants. Enditem