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‘Injured Airman’ Adds to Exercise

  • Published
  • By TSgt. Dan Heaton
  • 127th Wing Public Affairs
ALPENA COMBAT READINESS TRAINING CENTER, Mich. -- --  Dang if THAT doesn't look like it must hurt.

Technical Sgt. Kenneth Glanzie spent most of Thursday with his leg wrapped up with a compound fracture of the fibula. And he had the screams and moans to go with it.

Glanzie's leg injury was a fake. Part of an extensive exercise to test the ability of Air National Guard medical specialists - doctors, nurses and all the related personnel it takes to run an emergency room.

The training exercise, at the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center in northern Michigan, brought together about 85 Airmen from eight medical groups from seven states. The exercise helped the Airmen refresh skills that could be used both in a combat setting or to respond to a domestic emergency. The "disaster" in this training was a massive earthquake in central Michigan.

"The Guard has been, and undoubtedly will be again called to respond to disasters at home, be it tornadoes, earthquakes or whatever," said Master Sgt. Robert Wagster. "This training helps to ensure that everyone is ready, no matter what the scenario."

In the end, Glanzie, a dental technician with the 127th Medical Group at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, suffered no real injuries, but spent some 5 hours with a fake injury to his leg. During that time, doctors offered a diagnosis, technicians took him to a X-ray station and pharmacy specialists prepared placebo medicines for him - all in an effort to be ready to quickly do the same should the next "emergency" be real.

"Training like this is what keeps our skills sharp and keeps us ready to respond, however and wherever needed," said Lt. Col. Roxellen Auletto, a nurse practitioner with the 177th Medical Group, New Jersey Air National Guard.