have a greater appreciation and a greater sense of patience for the dedication it takes to develop the products because of my experience downrange. I apply that patience to this process and know that, eventually, the right things will come out of this process: Te right products, the right devices will be there when they are needed.”
ON A NEW TEAM NOW Marie Cochran’s civilian job as a contractor at USAMRMC is removed from the front lines of medi- cal logistics where she served as an Army officer, but she takes pride in helping the USAMRMC leadership navigate the complex requirements of medical product development, especially in these fiscally challenging times. Here, Cochran, right, discusses life-cycle management strategies with Robert Steigerwald and Patricia Bewley of the Decision Gate Support Office at USAMRMC, Fort Detrick, MD. (Photos by Jeffrey Soares, USAMRMC Public Affairs)
to do it and when they need to do it. And that’s rewarding, because this is complex. One of the challenges is watching them try to find ways to stay on target with reduced budgets.”
In Qatar, Cochran was part of a differ- ent team in the same overarching effort. “You knew that you were part of
the
medical team that was saving lives imme- diately,” she said. “It didn’t matter if you were filling the shelf, pulling stock from shelves, fixing a piece of equipment; you knew this stuff was going to be used on or needed by somebody to heal or poten- tially save a life. So everyone assigned to the depot held the sense that they were part of a team that dealt with life-and- death situations every day.”
She remembers in particular receiving and rapidly fielding the IFAK, a simple but critical medical kit that every Soldier carried. “We got the IFAK shipments in and distributed throughout the battle- field in less than a week. … Working with the Air Force, we were able to fig- ure out the most expeditious deployment process for those kits and got them into the hands of the units in less than a week
from the date that they were shipped from the States.”
“We worked hard with the Air Force to get those shipments shipped directly to the warfighter, and in one case I was told the Air Force air-dropped a shipment. Tat was pretty cool; it was fun to get that coordinated.” Cochran is
Cochran can also see the broader impact that USAMRMC has beyond the Army.
“You know we’re doing well not only for the services and our warfighters, our heroes, but in some cases for mankind. I mean, this command has that type of impact, and I’m really honored to be able to con- tinue to be associated with this command.”
Te abiding motivation behind Cochran’s work remains, “first and foremost, know- ing that somebody else relies on something I do. If I didn’t have that sense of purpose, it wouldn’t matter. It is the motivator.
also particu-
larly proud of the humanitarian assistance efforts that personnel at the depot in Qatar coordinated with a number of civil- ian organizations in the States to deliver donated pencils, candy, coats, clothing and other supplies to children in the war zones. Te depot also sent hundreds of metric tons of supplies to northern Paki- stan after the earthquake in October 2005.
“Te generosity of Americans was always evident, and when we could, we would add a box or two of donated goods to medical supply shipments, knowing that eventually medics and other U.S. Soldiers would give the donated things to the local nationals,” she said.
“Here, it’s a third-tier reality; we’re farther out from that bull’s-eye of who’s going to use this [medical materiel], but I think I
“Te next important thing to me is to be the right type of person to be selected as a mentor, because you don’t choose your mentees; they choose you. Knowing that someone is relying on me for advice and guidance is important to me. Even though I’m just an admin contractor now, I may have a leadership role to play in some small way.”
“I think the last thing … is to continue to strive to represent something bigger than myself. It sounds grandiose, but it’s true: You want to be better because you’re rep- resenting the United States Army; you’re representing your command; you’re rep- resenting the United States flag.”
Meanwhile, she said, “Every day is a learning experience.”
—MS. MARGARET C. ROTH
ASC.ARMY.MIL
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