Responding to the call

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Danielle Wolf
  • 442nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
It was just another Monday for Staff Sgt. Debra Watson. She woke up that late-May morning, got her three kids ready for school and got dressed in her freshly pressed Air Force blues.

She spent the next four hours on readiness-management-period orders in the 442nd Medical Squadron before heading back home to Warrensburg, Mo.

As she drove through the Knob Noster State Park, she had no idea of the situation ahead of her. Within just a few minutes, Sergeant Watson came upon a car accident at the corner of DD Highway and SE 611th Road.

Sergeant Watson had arrived at the two-car accident less than a minute after it had happened. In one car: Two active-duty Airmen headed eastbound toward Whiteman AFB; in the other car, a civilian who had attempted to pull out onto the highway.

As an emergency medical technician for the 442nd FW and a Licensed Practical Nurse, who specializes in geriatrics in her civilian job, Sergeant Watson was required to stop.

"I got out and immediately asked if anyone had called (911,)" she said. "They said they had, so I began to assess the situation."

The active-duty Airman driving the car told her he was OK and the civilian also said she was OK. But the other Airman, who was sitting on the ground at the time, told Sergeant Watson she was having chest pains.

"I got on the ground with her and she told me she was having difficulty breathing," she said. "The airbags had deployed, so that's pretty common."

After a thorough assessment of the Airman's condition, Sergeant Watson had established the Airman had no broken bones, so she began to calm her down.

"Her pulse started racing when she finally realized that if she had not had her seatbelt on, she would have gone through the windshield," Sergeant Watson said. "But I had to calm her down, so I tried to keep her focused on the positives. I told her, 'Vehicles can be replaced; lives cannot.'"

She said sometimes the most important thing someone can do is keep the victim calm. If the Airman's blood pressure became elevated enough, she could have gone into shock, Sergeant Watson said.

Within about 10 minutes the fire department had arrived at the scene. With Sergeant Watson in control of the situation, a technician handed her a stethoscope and blood pressure cuff so she could keep track of the Airman's vital signs.

It was at that time that Maj. Timothy Eaton, 509th Bomb Wing flight safety chief, was coming back from lunch.

"When I got there, Sergeant Watson was all business," Major Eaton said. "She was talking to the Airmen at the scene and trying to make them feel better while she was writing down the female Airman's vital signs."

Major Eaton said he knew Sergeant Watson was an Airman because she was in uniform, but had no idea that she only dealt with traumas and trauma scenarios one weekend a month as a reservist.

"To me, she was just an Airman who was doing her job, and she was doing it well," he said. "There were no life-threatening injuries, but it's good she was there because the accident was pretty scary."

When the ambulance arrived a few minutes later, Sergeant Watson had already briefed the Airmen about what to expect. She suggested that both Airmen go to the emergency room and get checked for possible injuries.

Sergeant Watson knew the not-so-apparent effects an accident could have on people, from her own experience - and she was right.

Sergeant Watson said she hasn't spoken with either of the Airmen in the accident since it happened, but she later found out the Airman she had assisted was diagnosed with a dislocated hip.

It's situations like this, Sergeant Watson said, that led her to the career path she has today in the medical field.

"Several years ago, my son had a seizure and stopped breathing," she said. "I didn't know what to do. Luckily, we were traveling with my parents at the time and my mom was a nurse, so she knew what to do. I felt helpless and never wanted anything like that to ever happen again."

That's when she decided to cross train from the transportation career field to the medical field in the Air Force Reserve.
A few years later, Sergeant Watson had another scare when her daughter started choking. This time she was prepared though.

"Thankfully, I was able to take care of my daughter when that happened," she said. "This medical training has come in handy on the outside."

Whether it's to help her family, fellow Airmen or complete strangers, Sergeant Watson said she knows she's called to the medical field.

"It's my job, and I have to stop and help - whether I'm on duty or not," she said. "I hope someone would stop for me if I needed it."

Sergeant Watson, who is returning to school to become a registered nurse, with hopes of working in an emergency room, said helping people - especially fellow Airmen - is her duty.

"They're our people," she said.

That was not the first car accident Sergeant Watson has stopped to assist, and she said it certainly won't be her last.