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Medics in the fast lane
By FLGOFF Skye Smith

Volume 49, No. 5, April 05, 2007
 
ACTION PACKED: The Roulettes perform over the Clipsal 500 track, as an Air Force medical team waits on the ground to provide assistance to the drivers during the race.
Photo by SGT Mick Bott
 
HEARTS were racing at this year’s Clipsal 500 V8 Supercar race in Adelaide, but an elite Air Force medical team were trackside ready to lend a hand to drivers in need.

The team of Air Force Specialist Reservists comprised AIRCDRE Roger Capps, WGCDR Andrew Pearce, WGCDR Bill Griggs, SQNLDR Bruce Paix and FLTLT Carla Zampatti.

The ‘blue team’ was well represented by the different major Adelaide hospitals and has supported motor racing in South Australia since the first Adelaide Formula One Grand Prix in 1985.

WGCDR Pearce, who is an emergency physician and trauma consultant at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, enjoyed the team approach at Clipsal.

“Working in a multi-disciplinary team of paramedics, doctors, nurses and ambulance staff during a crisis enables us to get the job done quickly and effectively,” WGCDR Pearce said.

A multi-agency medical support team of about 50 people work at the Clipsal 500 and primarily care for injured drivers in the event of a crash.

The injured are treated at the track and evacuated to the Royal Adelaide Hospital for further treatment.

“Clipsal 500 in Adelaide provided another opportunity to practice our skills in emergency trauma and retrieval procedures,” WGCDR Pearce said.

“The ability to use my training in a hospital situation as a volunteer at the race track and as an Air Force Reservist in areas of conflict enables me to continually maintain my skills.

“At Clipsal we needed to quickly adapt to working away from the hospital, with minimal kit, in a deployed environment, with diverse challenges confronting us in emergency situations.

“That’s where our Air Force training really becomes invaluable.”

WGCDR Pearce rode shotgun in Chase Car One, the safety vehicle driven by a Holden SS V8 driver, with medical and life-saving equipment onboard for a quick response in the event of a crash.

Extracting an Aussie car driver from his vehicle after he had suffered concussion, treating spectators with dehydration and helping some Bigpond ‘promo girls’ who burnt their legs on the exhaust of a Harley motorbike, were just some of the incidents WGCDR Pearce responded to at the track.