Reservist Medical Staff

[Tigs2]

John N
With reference to your statement on the lunchtime news today.

You have made a lot of good inputs on this site and particularly your contributions to the Chinook case, however, I and many people sat around me today were dismayed by your comments concerning the call up of reservist medical staff. You said that the 'reservist medical staff were not as good as full-time military staff'. You have really P@**£d off a lot of medical staff that are preparing to deploy to the gulf. Your statement might be true for any other reservist branch except the Doctors and Nurses.

The reservist Docs and Nurses might not know a jot about how to wear uniform or salute at the right time(for many, even that comment is an insult), but when it comes to looking after traumatic injuries, they are the best. The average 'full-time' military nurse and doctor has no where near the experience of your average doctor and nurse who works in A&E at a general Hospital let alone the experience of Private/National health surgeons who have been called up. If you would have been carried back with life threatning injuries to that field hospital in Bahrain that we had, who would you rather have been looked after by?

I accept you may have been trying to have a dig at the fact we have had to many defence cutbacks, but your comments were insulting to a large group of people that are deploying to the Gulf for the benifit of the rest of us. If you get the opportunity on the News again it would be good to rectify this wrongdoing.

[Proman]

Before this goes too far, I agree with the above sentiment about medical staff...but that applies to all reservists. We are part-time, not second-rate.

The reason many of us serve is a commitment to public duty - given that many of us have other jobs that commitment could be argued to be greater than many full-time people, and certainly the motive isn't money. I do it because I believe if everyone put their heads in the sand it would be a poorer world - but my main work, family and friends, also pay a price as well and I'm grateful to them all.

What the services get is a professional skill set they can't develop internally. In the RAF, what I do is not a full trade. Often it's a secondary duty only. In two years, full time officers develop some rudimentary skills in a posting, but then they're moved on into another totally unrelated area. However the services recognise they need these skills, indeed they're essential, and we meet in the middle.

I have lost count of the number of times I've done my job, and been told by full time serving colleagues that until now they'd had a poor view of the reserves. They now realised that we're as engaged, energetic, and thorough, and have new ideas and skills totally beyond them. And if our military skills aren't as finely tuned (and they're not, which real grown-ups manage to smile at), let them come and do my full-time civvy job on two weeks at Cranditz, and '28' days training a year...then we'll sort men from boys!

Meantime I've made some great new friends, had some amazing experiences, and taken lots back into my civilian life and work.

Nuff said.

[Regie Mental]

Well said Pro Man, we do it because we want to, not because we can't get a job anywhere else (joke).

RM

[Tigs2]

Proman, Regi mental

I offer unconditional apologies. I too am a reservist I was mearly trying to offer balance to an argument in order that it did not appear that i was trying to go for the juggular. Proman, I agree with all your sentiments, but when John was talking about 'the standard', if we are honest the boys on the squadron are more current in their particular skillset than me or many other reservist pilots, the full-time infantryman is likely to be more practiced/rehearsed than the reservist(I am not talking ability here as, reservists have far more to bring to the table because of their 'other lives'). But when it comes to Doctors Surgeons and Nurses, the roles are reversed, they(the reservists) are the most current in up-to-date techniques etc. No offence intended to reservists!

[Jimlad]

As a naval reservist I'd also say that just becuase we are part time doesnt mean we are second rate. In the RNR there are a lot of small branches that the RN can't do without, but for various reasons can't afford to run full time. The RNR can at low cost provide a pool of specialised manpower to do those jobs which frees up others to do other tasks. The reserves are vital to this nation, sure there are some hollywood wannabes, but for the most part we are committed, motivated and good at our jobs.

[mutleyfour]

But saying that your good probably wouldn't keep John N on the box.

:)

[BEagle]

Have to say that the lovely little Scots Army Captain (reservist medical officer) who gave me some horrid innoculation in the field hospital at KKIA during 'the last lot' certainly knew how to wear her uniform! Desert-cabbage slacks and a rather too tight tee-shirt in the somewhat chilly environs of the depths of the terminal building certainly took my mind off the meningococcus, plague, anthrax or whatever other vile jab it was she was inocculating me with - it was really quite painless when one's attention was being drawn totally to lovely blue eyes and prominent 'temperature sensors'.......

Yes- non-PC and totally sexist, I know. But what the heck - she was gorgeous!

[AlanM]

Beagle - I've still got the video of me getting mine at KKMC - and she was a right howler (sorry luv!)

A point continued in knowing that she was a regular thankfully NOT wearing a tight shirt.

Yes- non-PC and totally sexist, I know. But what the heck - she was a heffer!

[Tocsin]

Way to go Beags! :D

Nice to know the reservist attributes are appreciated!

Speaking as a totally non-specialist (NBCC experienced) Auggie, I also appreciate the Med, Int, and PR types that are there to augment the regulars when needed...

[solotk]

I can only think John was thinking on his feet, and regretted the statement as soon as it launched.....

You're under a lot of pressure under the cameras in that situation, so I'll put it down to that

From another Reservist.....:D

[Tigs2]

BEagle

Bless you sir , you have brought back many pleasant memories from the last gulf farce!

kind regards
Tig2

[Wycombe]

..as a reluctant ex-Auggie ("put my letter in" about a Year ago after 16 years RAuxAF) I watch current events unfold with mixed emotions....wish I was involved again in some respects and glad I won't be in others.

Proman & Tigs 2..you're both spot on!..I'm sure every Auggie who ever worked alongside Regulars doing essentially the same job came across some who considered us a waste of rations. For every one of those, thankfully, there were usually at least 5 more who would make us welcome wherever we went, make allowances that most of us had full-time jobs and (stressful, because of our lack of free time!) lives outside and accept that that might reflect in our ability to do the job to the same standard as a Reg. who's being doing the same stuff day-in day-out for 10 years.

As a non-Medic ex-Reservist, and a realist, I don't think John N's comments (if they are related accurately here) were too wide of the mark.

Oh, and back to mixed emotions - BEags, really miss the Vickers Funbus :( (ok, and Alberts and Timmies aswell :) )

[Regie Mental]

Wycombe

Whilst I note your comments, your view that JN's comments were not very wide of the mark is completely wrong.

There is clearly a difference between those Reservists who do the same job in uniform as they do in civvie street and those who do something completely different. In peacetime the former probably work more intensively and get more hands-on experience than their military colleagues (e.g a Surgeon in A & E in an NHS Hospital).

Those who only undertake, say Int duties some 3 or 4 weeks a year, will clearly not be as capable as their full-time colleagues, but in the event of war the 'extra' they bring to the party is very much required.

So in the absence of JN, can you please confirm why Reserve Medics are not as good, the personal experience you have to back up your view, if you have no personal experience the hearsay evidence you have, and if you have no experience why JN's comment was not that wide of the mark in your view.

Reg (increasingly) Mental

[Wycombe]

Regie,

Oh dear, I should have qualified what I said to exclude the Medics (I did mention that I wasn't one) and am in complete agreement with the sentiments expressed by Tigs2 in his original post.

What I should have made clear (and now you have said it for me) is that a Reservist like me that does something completely different in Civvy Life to what I did in the Military (and only does it for a few weeks a year in total) will very rarely be a capable as his/her Regular counterpart. The Regulars I always got on with were the ones who were able to accept that indisputable fact and put our enthusiasm to good use.

I'm sorry you've interpreted my comments the way you have - when I was "in" we had close links with the Auggie Medics and they were a great (and very professional) bunch.

Auggies who do essentially the same job in Civvy street as they do for the Mil should of course be good at it - unlike a Medic Unit, we had very few of those on my Sqn (but instead rather a lot of ex-Regs, many of whom had put a lot of years in and most of whom were a great help and added to our overall credibility).

[John Nichol]

Hi,

I'm pretty sure I did not say "reservists are not as good" (but I am going to check)

what I'm sure I said was - most people in the front line would prefer full time medical personel (a view I canvasesd from serving personel) - but in the abscence of that, the reservists do an excellent job and to all intents and purposes, if you are injured, it doesn't matter who treats you.

I also said that reservists were a highly respected, well trained & intergrated part of the UK military machine.

[Proman]

...and can spell.


(NO, NO, NO, I'm only joking...it's a joke...)

[Tigs2]

John
Perhaps we now see the power of editing. The article was either on Sky News or The BBC 24 hr news channel.