At the start of May I went out for the Expert Field Medical Badge (EFMB) and got to play in the dirt for about 10 days. The training included the backstroke under barbed wire. They hosed it down pretty good for the actual testing day.

I didn't earn the badge this year, sadly, but it was tough: only 3% of the candidates earned it. The grading criteria is rigid and, once they started shooting (blanks) at me with "arty" shells going off around, I reverted to my clinical experience and not "EFMB standard". It was pretty fun running around anyway and good training for if I am ever in a real combat situation and need to give medical aid.

In this picture, you can practically hear the First Sergeant thinking, "You got to pull the casualty out of fire and around the corner BEFORE you drop your aid bag and start saving lives, sir!"

I'll get the badge next time.