Imperial Beach, Calif. — For over a century, from the bloodied beaches of Iwo Jima to the desert valleys of Afghanistan, “green side” Navy hospital corpsmen have stood alongside Marines. Today, that legacy lives on with the sailors that comprise the medical team of Task Force Sapper, supporting Marines conducting engineering missions along the U.S. southern border since Jan. 23, 2025.

While the battlefield has changed, the mission of the Navy Corpsmen remains the same: keeping Marines in the fight. Task Force Sapper’s corpsmen and medical officer provide 24/7 care and crisis response, often in an expeditionary environment. From setting up mobile aid stations at remote border locations to preventative health efforts, the team’s impact goes beyond treating muscle-skeletal injuries and lacerations.

“We’re always on call, even when the uniform’s off,” said U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Austin Strader, the senior enlisted corpsman of Task Force Sapper. “The Marines trust us to be there, and we don’t take that lightly.”

Strader oversees a team of corpsmen dispersed across multiple Task Force Sapper sites in California, Arizona, and Texas. Co-located with the platoons, each corpsman carries their own medical bag, providing medical support for hours and days on end until the mission is complete. Despite limited staffing, long hours, and few breaks, morale remains high.
“Every day, I’m proud of my team,” said Strader. “They’ve earned the trust of the Marines. That’s everything out here.”

Medical readiness at the platoon level:

Corpsmen start their day before dawn, staging their mobile medical kits and mapping out emergency evacuation routes along the southern border barrier. Often, they’re not just responding to injuries, they’re helping with barrier reinforcement tasks too.

“If we’re not doing medicine, we’re slinging wire with the guys,” said U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Lahir Castro. “Being a jack-of-all-trades means they trust me, not just with their injuries, but as part of their platoon.”

The trust between Marines and their “Doc” is built over conversations while going through tough times together. It’s about knowing when to drop rank and just be human.
“I tell them: ego stays at the door. There’s no ego in medicine,” said Castro. “You have to be someone they can count on when it matters.”

Medical readiness throughout the Task Force:

Leading the medical effort is U.S. Navy Lt. Alexis Albright, the medical officer of Task Force Sapper. A former corpsman herself, she sees her role as one of mentorship and coordination.

“I let the corpsmen do their jobs,” said Albright. “They’re closest to the Marines. My job is to train them, support them, and run the chaos when it hits.”
Altogether, the team have addressed cases of heat exhaustion, lacerations from concertina wire, and an array of musculoskeletal injuries. But their most complex cases often go unseen.

“Mental health is the hardest,” said Albright. “The stigma is still there, but when a Marine comes forward and trusts us…that’s a win.”

Corpsman readiness through training:

Training is fundamental to the team’s readiness. Strader draws from past experiences in physical therapy to teach corpsmen how to conduct joint exams and diagnose common field injuries. Castro, who trained in a trauma center in Cleveland, walks his Marines through the SMARCH algorithm, a step-by-step method for handling traumatic injuries in the field.

Medical planning is a team effort. From coordinating with local fire departments for medevacs, to building treatment protocols from scratch, the task force’s medical team leads coordinate efforts in a short notice.

“There’s no cookie-cutter medicine out here,” said Strader. “We didn’t arrive with much, but we made it work.”

Sapper corpsmen legacy:

Despite the grind, the medical team is focused on legacy, pushing the standard higher for whoever comes next.
“If I can set the bar and give the next guy a better trajectory, that’s a win,” said Castro. “Let’s rebuild that wartime reputation corpsmen used to have, being the best.”

Strader reinforced that sentiment, offering a piece of advice for the next generation of Navy corpsmen. “Know your limits,” said Strader. “Own what you don’t know. And never stop learning.”

In the unforgiving terrain of the southern border, where days are long and resources are limited, the medical team of Task Force Sapper reinforces the corpsman creed: “So that others may live.”