A newly designated hospital corpsman recently became the 10,000th Navy graduate of the Basic Medical Technician Corpsman Program (BMTCP).
Hospitalman Jordan Hakes is among the one-third of approximately 30,000 of today’s Navy hospital corpsmen who are graduates of the Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) Fort Sam Houston-based Navy and Air Force bi-service training program, said Master Chief Hospital Corpsman Shanon Best.
Navy hospital corpsmen have trained side by side with their Army and Air Force counterparts in basic and advanced “A” and “C” School programs since 2010 as part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) initiative. As an integrated campus under a single university-style administration, METC is the largest consolidation of service training in DOD history and is the world’s largest military medical education and training institution.
Hakes, a Flagstaff, Ariz., native, said he received no advanced warning that he was the 10,000th graduate, though the 89 graduates knew their class had the 10,000th graduate.
“I didn’t really know what to do,” Hakes said of them moment he was announced as the 10,000th graduate. “I just knew it took a while when they called my name. It was a really unique experience, and I’m really glad to be a part of it.”
Hakes will remain at the METC where he will train at the tri-service Radiology “C” School. But for the moment, he said he’s going to enjoy the milestone and ponder his new found luck.
“It’s a milestone for the program for sure, and I’m honored that I happened to be that graduate. Maybe I should just buy some lottery tickets.”
NMTSC is an echelon 4 command reporting to the Navy Medicine Education and Training Command. NMTSC is part of the Navy Medicine team, a global health-care network of Navy medical professionals around the world who provide high-quality health care to eligible beneficiaries. Navy Medicine personnel deploy with Sailors and Marines worldwide, providing critical mission support aboard ships, in the air, under the sea and on the battlefield.