A hospital technician, due back to England this month, has contributed to saving countless lives in Afghanistan as part of the only team in the country able to maintain the vital life-support machines in Camp Bastion’s Hospital.
Sergeant Neil Wold, 32, from Ashington in Northumberland, has been working as an electronics technician for the Medical and Dental Servicing Section (MDSS), a three-man team that maintains all the equipment in the hospital in Helmand.
As a technician in the MDSS, Neil looks after more than 2000 pieces of kit, everything from the hospital’s main sterilisers down to individual electronic thermometers.
Talking about his work, he said: “It’s very difficult, sometimes very stressful, the pressure is on. A lot of the time the equipment we work on is life-support equipment, so you must make sure the job is done correctly and to the best of your ability.
Sergeant Neil Wold, 32, from Ashington in Northumberland, has been working as an electronics technician for the Medical and Dental Servicing Section (MDSS), a three-man team that maintains all the equipment in the hospital in Helmand.
As a technician in the MDSS, Neil looks after more than 2000 pieces of kit, everything from the hospital’s main sterilisers down to individual electronic thermometers.
Talking about his work, he said: “It’s very difficult, sometimes very stressful, the pressure is on. A lot of the time the equipment we work on is life-support equipment, so you must make sure the job is done correctly and to the best of your ability.
“Seeing the equipment working on a patient and knowing that equipment is keeping the patient alive, that is a real sense of achievement, a real sense of pride in your work.”
"keeping that patient breathing"
Neil hasn’t always looked after such delicate kit. He worked with artillery and tanks for ten years prior to getting the opportunity to transfer to MDSS, which he said he 'jumped at'. Now the work he does comes from the hospital and the rest from the combat medics out on the ground in Helmand.
The technically-minded Sergeant is also currently the only Brit in Afghanistan capable of maintaining respirators.
He added: "So when I walk into the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) and see any patient that is connected to them, I know, that that is my work. That’s a good feeling, knowing that I have a direct input that is keeping that patient breathing and allowing them to recover."
In early April, Neil will finish his tour and be reunited with his wife Nicola and daughter Katie (5). He is looking forward to getting back into normal family life.
"keeping that patient breathing"
Neil hasn’t always looked after such delicate kit. He worked with artillery and tanks for ten years prior to getting the opportunity to transfer to MDSS, which he said he 'jumped at'. Now the work he does comes from the hospital and the rest from the combat medics out on the ground in Helmand.
The technically-minded Sergeant is also currently the only Brit in Afghanistan capable of maintaining respirators.
He added: "So when I walk into the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) and see any patient that is connected to them, I know, that that is my work. That’s a good feeling, knowing that I have a direct input that is keeping that patient breathing and allowing them to recover."
In early April, Neil will finish his tour and be reunited with his wife Nicola and daughter Katie (5). He is looking forward to getting back into normal family life.
