Lt Col Dru Aycock – Compassion Under Gunfire

In this extremely heartfelt interview, Marcus has the honor of sharing time and stories with Lt Col Dru Aycock, RN, USAF. Want real stories of compassion during the heat of battle? Or, want to learn how to evacuate hospitals full of patients during a disaster? Of Course you do! Hear how a love of video games became a tool of distraction and compassion when being fired upon. Hear about Dru’s Master’s Degree and how it may end up saving your life some day. There’s a story about bagels that’s really not about bagels and it shares what we can learn from the true front lines of war. Find out how Marcus and Dru were passing ships in the night decades ago and what brought them together again. You’ll hear a very sweet tribute to Garrett, Marc’s third Seeing Eye dog, and more stories about how compassion comes together in big, big ways.

Key topics:

• 00:00 – Introductions
• 01:20 – Marcus asks Lt Col Aycock about his career and how one gets into a specialty like mass casualty.
• 07:38 – Dru is asked about working in St. Louis, MO in the ‘90s and how that service population affected his practice and service in the military.
• 11:18 – Dru talks about the differences between the civilian practice and military practice. Compassion is a straightforward in a combat situation, everyone is a brother and sister, and that makes everything more urgent.
• 21:50 – Marcus asks Dru about of the some of the mass casualty events he has worked over the years. Dru starts with a story around Hurricane Katrina.
• 27:15 – Dru is asked to share a time he witnessed compassion. Dru shares a story about his first deployment and a child in the back of an airplane.
• 40:00 – Marcus asks his rapid-fire questions. Dru would like people to just “care more for each other.”
• 43:36 – Thank you and conclusions! 

Resources for you: 

• More communication tips and resources for how to cultivate compassion: https://marcusengel.com/freeresources/
• Connect with Marcus on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcusengel/
• Learn more about Marcus’ Books: https://marcusengel.com/store/
• Subscribe to the podcast through Apple: https://bit.ly/MarcusEngelPodcast
• Subscribe to the podcast through Spotify: https://bit.ly/Spotify-MarcusEngelPodcast

More About Lt Col Dru “Bwanna” Aycock RN (JAN):

“Just a nurse”
RN in 1993 bachelors degree in nursing
ER/Trauma Nurse since ‘94
Entered USAF in ‘97 as ER/Trauma Nurse
CCATT(critical care air transport) nurse in 1999
FLIGHT nurse in 2000 (Aeromedical Evacuation)
7 deployments into 3 conflict zones (AE)
5 humanitarian support deployments (AE)
Master’s Degree in Emergency and Disaster Management
Current job: Chief of Global Aeromedical Evacuation branch of 618th Air Operations Center at Scott AFB Illinois.  Will retire from AF in August of 2024 with 27.5 years.  

To be honest, I’m not really into all those letters behind my name. Only thing I value others to know is that I’m an RN. The “just a nurse” thing is a bit of an inside joke. A passing comment by an over-confident doctor that I decided to own. If you need anything else just ask me tomorrow when we speak.

Date: 2/6/2023
Name of show: Compassion & Courage: Conversations in Healthcare
Episode title and number: Episode 88 – Lt Col Drew Aycock – Compassion Under Gunfire