Travis Airmen complete training at DGMC after hurricane hits, floods tech school

  • Published
  • By Jennifer Brugman
  • 60th AMW Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, CA. --  Two Travis Airmen were going through Cardiopulmonary Phase II training at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., when Hurricane Katrina hit.

Airman 1st Class Chiquita McCoy and Airman Destini Monteiro were halfway through their nine-month long class when they were forced to shelter in place at the Keesler hospital Aug. 27.

They spent that Sunday through Thursday in the hospital cardiology unit.

“It was an experience,” said Airman Monteiro.

When the water rose, the first floor of the hospital flooded and Airman Monteiro, along with others in her class had to help move people and equipment upstairs.

“That was stressful – moving everybody,” she said.

However, she says the most stressful part was trying to get her stuff back.

Nothing she owned was damaged, as she was staying in the dorms, but she only got her things back last month.

“I had to fight for it,” Airman Monteiro said. “You can get a duplicate birth certificate or high school diploma but it’s not the same.”

She was able to get all of her things back. However, her and other students’ rooms were looted. They all lost CDs and DVD players.

After two weeks at Sheppard AFB, Texas, Airmen McCoy and Monteiro came to Travis to finish their cardiopulmonary training.

“We didn’t see a lot — we left by plane,” Airman Monteiro said. She didn’t see any of the disaster until last month when she was watching the news.

They graduated Dec. 28. However, Airman McCoy gave birth to a baby boy Dec. 20 and was unable to attend.

The graduation ceremony marks the end of a journey that began on the other side of the country and was interrupted by one of the worst natural disasters in the nation’s history.

In order to earn their diplomas, Airmen McCoy and Monteiro had to learn the ins and outs of helping people breathe.

“Most people take breathing for granted,” said Tech. Sergeant Austin Delacruz, Cardiopulmonary Phase II course supervisor. “It’s second nature, an involuntary reflex. But for thousands of Americans who suffer from breathing problems, each breath is a major accomplishment.”

Air Force Cardiopulmonary technologists/respiratory therapists must undergo four months of Phase I class work, nine months of Phase II clinical and classroom work and 15 months of on-the-job training.

The Air Force Cardiopulmonary program is accredited nationally so that graduates from this program are eligible to take the national board examinations.

In addition, Air Force cardiopulmonary technologists undergo Critical Care Air Transport Team training to become part of a three- man team [physician, nurse and cardiopulmonary technologists] capable of transporting critical care patients anywhere both in hostile or peaceful environments.