Naval Hospital/Seabees build combat care course

The course is dedicated in memory of HM3(FMF) Julian "Snoop Doc" Woods, a Jacksonville native who was killed during Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah, Iraq in November 2004. It is located on Perimeter Road near the Antenna Farm.

Twenty hospital corpsmen finished their week-long training of classroom coursework and firearms instruction with the successful completion of the TCCC obstacle course built by NCBM-202 Seabees.

The physically and mentally challenging course simulating a wartime environment is designed to prepare first responders for hostile conditions on the battlefield.

From left, Lt. Cmdr. Joseph Marcantel, Ensign Leonard Neal, BU1(SCW) Charles Carter and BU2 Charles Page of Contruction Battalion Maintenance Unit 202 Det Jax, listen as Naval Hospital Jacksonville Commanding Officer Capt. Raquel Bono gives some remarks at the opening ceremony for the new confidence course. Bono expressed her gratitude to the family of HM3(FMF) Julian Woods who was killed in Iraq in 2004. The new course is dedicated in his memory. Photo by Marsha Childs

Bono and the hospital's Command Master chief CMDCM (AW) Dennis Green were the first to navigate the confidence course.

In her opening remarks, Bono said, "The whole goal of the course was to be able to instill that extra level of confidence to make you (the corpsmen) as proficient as possible to do your job. The real reason we are here is to remember "Snoop Doc." What we are trying to do here is share the legacy of this very brave corpsman."

The first pair of "battle buddies" to successfully complete the course included HM1 Amanda Bynum and HM2 Thomas Bolsega.

They belly-crawled under barbed wire, scaled walls and crossed moats in full battle gear, while assessing and administering appropriate medical care to the injured (training dummies) they encountered along the course.

Working in tandem, they lifted, dragged and carried the wounded in harm's way to a safe haven as they provided cover with their bodies and protection with their weapons.

Naval Hospital Jacksonville Command Master Chief CMDCM(AW) Dennis Green tests his hand-eye coordination on the course. Photo by Marsha Childs

Each "Devil Doc," a term of camaraderie used by Marines on the battlefield for Navy corpsmen, touched the memorial plaque displayed at the beginning of the course in tribute to Woods. This fellow corpsman was killed while administering aid to a fallen Marine under enemy fire Nov. 10, 2004, the third day of operations to gain control of Fallujah.

His mother, Carolyn Woods, said, "I know right now my baby is looking down on us and he is so pleased. Thank God for kind hearts. This course is going to give me a chance to actually see and put me in touch with him."

The obstacle course was the brainchild of Lt. Cmdr. Joseph Marcantel, a family nurse practitioner, formerly assigned to the Naval Hospital Jacksonville Emergency Medicine Department. He attended TCCC training in January 2007, but it did not offer any practical application in the field.

Marcantel worked tirelessly to identify hospital funding to purchase the materials totaling $35,000. He also designed the obstacles based on the TCCC curriculum.

HA Jacqueline Lawson aims her weapon as HN Aaron Bruening administers aid to a fallen comrade. Photo by Marsha Childs

"I envisioned a course where corpsmen had to physically overcome an obstacle before they did medical intervention and I envisioned every skill set like tourniquet placement," he said.

NCMB-202 Officer in Charge Ensign Leonard Neal and his crew were delighted to assist the hospital with this worthwhile project that began Dec. 16, 2007. "This is the first obstacle course of its kind to be built by the Navy. The Army and Air Force are already using them. Not only does it give the hospital an opportunity to train its corpsmen but also to reach out to the region and offer the training to more corpsmen to get them ready for war," remarked Neal.

The Seabees provided the labor to build the course, an $82,000 cost avoidance to the government.

The family of HM3(FMF) Justin Woods surrounds a plaque dedicating the Tactical Combat Care Casualty Confidence Course to the fallen hospital corpsman killed in November 2004 during the battle for Fallujah, Iraq. Photo by HN Jermaine Derrick

Construction went smoothly in spite of a few setbacks. Seabee Operations Chief BUC(SCW) Shawn Fellows recalled a week or two when the rain literally left them spinning their wheels. "We would dig holes and they would fill up with water and collapse. We were chasing our tails, but this isn't uncommon with construction," he said. Nevertheless, the course met its target completion date. "We are actually two weeks ahead of schedule," said Project Supervisor BU1(SCW) Charles Carter, who expressed pride in his crew.

Since September 2007, TCCC training has been required of all Navy enlisted medical personnel prior to being sent into a war zone.

The new Tactical Combat Casualty Care Confidence Course is dedicated to the memory of fallen HM3(FMF) Julian Woods who was killed while administering aid to a fallen comrade. Photo by HN Jermaine Derrick