Airmen 1st Class Taylor Ziegler, left, and Tanner Patrick, both aerospace medical technicians with the 31st Medical Group at Aviano Air Base in Italy, simulate caring for a patient in an ambulance using virtual reality headsets on July 11, 2023. (Brian Erickson/Stars and Stripes)
AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy — U.S. military medics at this base in northeastern Italy are jumping from a battlefield to an ambulance to a hospital setting, all at the push of a button and with no travel time required to reach patients.
The virtual reality software used by the 31st Medical Group allows educators to simulate a host of medical scenarios for service members during their annual tactical combat casualty care training.
“With the VR, I can run a situation eight times, and each time I can try to challenge myself with something new,” said Airman 1st Class Taylor Ziegler, an aerospace medical technician. “It (could) be getting patient interaction down or adjusting the algorithm of movements needed to treat the patient in a specific scenario.”
But it’s not just personnel at Aviano who are taking advantage of the software. Soldiers stationed at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza travel two hours for the opportuni
