The two field hospitals have the capacity for 18 surgical operations plus beds for about 50 patients. There are three armoured cross-country ambulances and six soft-skin ambulances at the Logistics Battalion and a further 20 or so other patient transport vehicles of various types in the battlegroup. There are six helicopters and two C130 Hercules transport aircraft at the Expeditionary Air Wing, EAW, that can be used for various forms of patient transport among other things.
When the Logistics Battalion appeared at the Regimental Day in Skövde, the large field hospital received the most attention with a long line of visitors. There were many people from the field of civilian healthcare present who came to see how the hospital works. The civilian dentist Mitra Johansson was naturally most interested in the hospital’s dental care clinic.
“I’m really impressed with the qualified equipment that they have here. This is nicer stuff than that available at many civilian dental clinics,” said Mitra Johansson.
The battlegroup has now also received delivery of the big Chevrolet ambulances that roll directly on and off the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. The patient thereby receives qualified emergency treatment in an unbroken chain of care over very long distances, from the area of deployment to a hospital in Sweden. Maria Swahn, who is a doctor at Södersjukhuset Hospital, SÖS, in Stockholm, had come to Skövde to look at the battlegroup’s medical resources.
“The soldiers in the NBG and their relatives can truly rest assured what with these modern ambulances and the advanced equipment available here,” says Maria Swahn.