A Flint-area hospital is playing a crucial role in training special operations combat medics for the U.S. military.
These medics play an important role not only on the battlefield, but also in isolated areas throughout the world.
The medics make their way to Hurley Medical Center in Flint after an extensive training program at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.
Dr. Michael Jaggi is chief of emergency medicine for Hurley. He said these combat medics will certainly be treating traumatic injuries, the kind of things you'd see on a battlefield. But they'll also be learning about general medicine, which they'll use to treat local populations around the world.
"When these medics are behind enemy lines, in indigenous populations, they really serve as ambassadors for the country, and they do so a lot of times by providing medical care. And it is not uncommon for these medics to be in remote parts of the world, in very austere environments. The native folks will need medical care, and they look to us and they look to our soldiers to provide that care." Jaggi said.
The combat medics will train in Hurley's emergency department, intensive care and pediatric units, and birthing wards.
Dr. Jaggi said it is a great honor for Hurley to be training combat medics, it is one of only four civilian locations in the U.S. to do so.
