An Army medic in Vietnam, he's haunted by cries for help

An Army medic in Vietnam, he's haunted by cries for help
Ruben Greer was an Army medic in Vietnam, the non-commissioned officer in charge of a “dust-off” medical evacuation unit in the Mekong Delta in 1966 and 1967.
ROB CARSON;
STAFF WRITER
Published: 04/08/12

Ruben Greer, a Vietnam War medic who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, says a veterans therapy group and his faith in God have helped ease his anger. (DEAN J. KOEPFLER/Staff photographer)

Ruben Greer was an Army medic in Vietnam, the non-commissioned officer in charge of a “dust-off” medical evacuation unit in the Mekong Delta in 1966 and 1967.

The U.S. military suffered some of its highest casualties in Vietnam during those two years, with a total of 17,297 dead.

Unlike many veterans, whose post-war stress was a result of having killed people, Greer’s stress came from being unable to save them.

He’s haunted by memories of being the only medic on scenes strewn with wounded soldiers and having no hope of getting to them all. He still hears the cries for help and anguishes over medical mistakes he may have made in the chaos.

Greer refers to his insistent memories and flashbacks of Vietnam as “little boys in tennis shoes” who run around inside his brain, out of control.

“You see a lot of stuff you’re not supposed to see in combat,” he said. “The brain encapsulates some thoughts that you can’t get rid of.”
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