Military duty requires individuals to be healthy both physically and psychologically. The military environment mostly is intense, and, therefore, requires individuals to have a sound mind in order to concentrate on given tasks. In this essay, I give an account of how lack of medical preparedness affected my performance in military duty, especially because of a traumatic experience I went through. Secondly, the essay also delves deep into literature about medical readiness in the army, and how it either influences negatively or positively the performance of military duties.
Approximately three years ago, one of my best friends was deployed in the Middle East on a military assignment, but he died while on guard after some terrorists threw an explosive at him. His body would later be flown into the country, the coffin wrapped with the flag of the United States. That experience shook me so much because we were not just friends as soldiers, but were also close buddies outside our jobs. My friend’s body was so fatally wounded that it was quite scary to view the body. The burial ceremony was engulfed in a somber mood, and the thought that I would never see my friend again was very traumatizing. I stayed with the trauma, and was very reluctant to seek medical help. One time I was deployed for a local assignment, and I could not focus, and on multiple occasions, I did not pass the periodic health assessment (PHA). Consequently, it concerned me for a very long time that I was not serving as expected in the military.
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When I reflect on the experience, I gather that my emotional imbalance affected my medical readiness for military duty. Carden (2019) states that medical readiness in the military means making sure specific military units can supply a force which can serve without limitations. In case of a war, it becomes very difficult for a force with various health limitations to sustain it and get victory. Most of the time, people have the perception that physical disabilities are the only limitations that affect the performance of a soldier. However, mental health or psychological issues also have a significant impact on the performance of a soldier. According to Jabbar et al. (2017), lack of concentration and the inability to focus is a common phenomenon in adults, and in this case, soldiers are not exceptions. The most common cause of inability to focus is anxiety but in the military setting, any mental health issue has the ability to distract a soldier.
Soldiers are required to undergo the periodic health assessment, which is always aimed at establishing the health status of soldiers, especially before they are deployed. The assessment evaluates aspects such as dental health, vision, hearing, most importantly, mental health (Wolfe, 2018). However, the military environment is most of the time criticized for promoting stigma against soldiers seeking for mental health (Acosta et al., 2014). Most soldiers would choose to remain silent over mental health issues for fear of being labeled as weak, and this silence most definitely affects their medical readiness in case of deployment.
In conclusion, my experience provides me with important lessons. Firstly, the military requires healthy soldiers in all aspects in order to perform effectively in various military tasks. Secondly, I need to always seek medical attention whenever I experience any mental health issues. If I stay silent, I will not be able to function effectively in my duties. The performance is various assignments require that I am healthy physically, mentally, and psychologically.
References
Acosta, J. D., Becker, A., Cerully, J. L., Fisher, M. P., Martin, L. T., Vardavas, R., ... & Schell, T. L. (2014). Mental health stigma in the military . Rand National Defense Research Inst Santa Monica CA.
Carden, M. (2019). Medical readiness is key for being prepared . U.S Army. https://www.army.mil/article/217961/medical_readiness_is_key_for_being_prepared
Jabbar, Q., Ansari, I., Shah, A., & Shah, A. A. (2017). A 28-Year-Old Man with Lack of Concentration and Inability to Focus. Psychiatric Annals , 47 (6), 285-286.
Wolfe, J. (2018). Reserve Soldiers’ Medical Readiness Essential for Deployments. Association of the United States Army. https://www.ausa.org/articles/reserve-soldiers%E2%80%99-medical-readiness-essential-deployments
