TA officer returns from iraq tour (From thisisoxfordshire)

TA officer returns from iraq tour

9:20am Tuesday 30th May 2006

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It's back to the day job for physiotherapist Roger Weddell, who has just returned from a tour of duty in Iraq.

The 28-year-old Territorial Army officer, who is a member of the 202 Field Hospital based at the Slade Park Barracks in Headington, Oxford, has spent the past four months at the central military hospital at the Shibah base, south of Basra.

And as if returning home wasn't good enough, on arriving in Britain he learned he had been promoted to the rank of captain.

While in Iraq, Capt Weddell, who used to live in Headington but has recently moved to Worcestershire, operated physiotherapist clinics for the UK Forces.

He was based in Basra and also ran satellite clinics visiting troops on location and travelling with a mobile unit, which included a small air-conditioned gym.

He said: "It was a great experience. I just loved it, and really got a lot out of it. I learned a lot, which will certainly help with my patients back here.

"Working in temperatures of 50C was tough.

"I was dealing with all sorts of injuries, but mostly lower back, shoulder and knee injuries.

"I had to learn to adapt a lot, from being a soldier one minute, to a physio the next.

"Returning home was the nicest but weirdest part.

"Going from desert to green is strange and being surrounded by so many people again takes some getting used to."

Capt Weddell has been in the TA and a member of 202 Field Hospital for more than two years. He originally got a taste for life in the reserve forces when he joined Oxford University Officer Training Corps while studying in Oxford.

Until recently, he worked as a physiotherapist at the John Radcliffe Hospital, but has now started a new job working for hospitals in the Midlands.

Last year, 17 Oxfordshire men from the Royal Green Jackets, also based at the Slade Park Barracks, served in Basra for six months.

They came home last November and returned to their civilian lives earlier this year.

The company, which is part of The Royal Rifle Volunteers, is set to undergo changes to bring them more closely in line with the regular Army.

In Oxford, the TA Infantry battalion will change its title and be brought closer to the Royal Green Jackets Light Infantry regulars. They will become the 7th Rifles and will gain two new units from London.

Anyone interested in joining the TA should call 01865 780157.

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