Fort Campbell, KY – A team from Blanchfield Army Community Hospital (BACH) was named Regional Health Command-Atlantic Best Medic during a four-day competition at Fort Bragg, North Carolina November 15th-19th, 2021.
BACH Combat Medic Specialist Staff Sgt. Jephte Guillaume, Byrd Soldier Medical Home non-commissioned officer in charge, and Behavioral Health Specialist Staff Sgt. Terrence Laisin, from inpatient behavioral health, competed against 10 other two-Soldier teams from the region.
“I was extremely lucky to have Staff Sergeant Guillaume as my fellow competitor. He is a very experienced Soldier, very knowledgeable and highly, highly motivated,” said Laisin.
“We worked really well together. Basically, we put pride aside and we let one or the other lead when an event was our strong suit,” said Guillaume, adding that he and Laisin only met one month before the competition. “We spent a little time getting to know each other and figuring out our expectations for each other and how we could best work together.”
The annual competition is a test that challenges Army medics’ physical, technical and mental skills. Competitors must have the Combat Medic Badge or Expert Field Medical Badge; meet current height and weight standards; be physically fit to include being able to run five to nine miles and march 10 to 18 miles; qualified on the M4 rifle, M9 pistol, or M17 pistol; know survival swimming, room-clearing tactics, and strategies, and have knowledge of medical tasks ranging from tactical combat casualty care to prolonged care.
“The prolonged field care and MVT lane required you to use your actual military experience and training to complete some of the tasks,” Guillaume said. During the graded scenario, the medical evacuation helicopter was delayed and they had to give prolonged Tactical Combat Casualty Care and cover until their patient could be safely evacuated.
Brig. Gen. Mary V. Krueger, RHC-A commanding general said that Best Medic builds upon readiness for Soldiers.
“We exist to provide medical readiness support in support of the Total Force mission; that is Army Medicine’s ‘why.’ The Best Medic Competition is one of the many ways our Soldiers showcase their mastery of this capability,” said Krueger. “This experience offers our Soldiers the opportunity to grow and learn lessons that they can bring back to their units. When our best teach other Soldiers, it improves our readiness and raises the bar for all.”
Both Guillaume and Laisin agree and can add this accomplishment to the tools they use to develop Soldiers.
“I have young Soldiers and it’s good to set an example for them,” said Laisin, sharing that he is sending one of his Soldiers outside of her comfort zone to a Soldier of the Month Board. “The RHC-A Best Medic competition was something outside my comfort zone, but as someone told me, you miss 100 percent of the shots that you don’t take, so take a shot, you never know.”
Headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, RHC-A provides medical, dental, and public health support to Soldiers, retirees and their family members at Army medical centers, hospitals, including BACH, and clinics from Fort Drum, New York, to Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico.
